


Foster Family

by FireStorm1991



Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Arson, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:22:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 26,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27584030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FireStorm1991/pseuds/FireStorm1991
Summary: Vegeta gets taken away from his family and sent to stay with the Briefs; however, nothing is really simple, especially when he falls for Bulma and gets sent away again. What will happen when they meet again, and what was his life like between that span of time?Original FFN Run: January 3, 2012 - August 8, 2012
Relationships: Bulma Briefs/Vegeta
Kudos: 17





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters.
> 
> Well, here’s a new story (again) for the new year. It’s another AU (big surprise XD) where Vegeta is in a foster home and goes to the Briefs family. However, something happens with Bulma that makes them send him away and they meet again in the future. I know, bad summary, but it’ll make a ton more sense when I actually write the chapter. Also, OOC warning, but did I really have to say that XD

It was a day that kids like him both hoped for and dreaded, a day where he’d be both free and trapped. After spending years with an abusive drunk father and a drug addict mother, Vegeta Ouji was being sent to a foster home. He would finally be able to get away from his parents, but being thirteen, he had to follow the orders of those taking care of him. He would be schlepped around everywhere and even if he did like a family, there were no guarantees that they would keep him.

“Hey, Vegeta!” he heard his best friend and neighbor call before he was taken away.

“Hey, Kakarot,” Vegeta greeted, refusing to meet his friend’s worried expression.

“So, where are you going to go?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” Vegeta answered honestly.

“Hello, are you Vegeta’s friend?” the social worker asked.

He nodded. “Yeah, my name is Goku. He calls me Kakarot.”

“Okay, Goku,” the social worker said giving him a notepad. “You can write down your address and phone number. And then I’ll give you the address to the foster home and you can come for a visit.”

Goku nodded and started writing down all of his information, although he knew Vegeta already had it stored in his laptop. It seemed like they were going to let him take most of his belongings, except some of his gaming consoles, which Vegeta had given to him a few days prior. He knew they were coming to take him away.

The social worker wrote down the information to the foster home and gave it to Goku and then turned to Vegeta. “Alright, let’s get you home before it gets late.”

Vegeta rolled his eyes without the woman seeing before nodding.

* * *

A few weeks went by and Vegeta hadn’t really adjusted to life in the foster home. He went to visit Goku most of the time. Goku’s family loved seeing him and they wished that they could take him in, but with two children and their father being away on business all the time, they didn’t stand a chance.

At this moment, Vegeta was lying down on his bed, staring up at another bed. In his room, there were two bunk beds so that four children could fit in there. He was alone right now. All the other children were playing outside or watching TV. Vegeta wanted no part of it.

His social worker appeared in his doorway and knocked. He turned his head to see her and then looked back up at the bed.

“Vegeta, there’s a family here that wants to meet you,” she told him. A wealthy family had been looking into taking him for the last month, but she hadn’t told him. She wanted to wait until all of the background checks were run so that she didn’t get his hopes up for nothing.

Vegeta sat up. He hadn’t expected anyone to come to meet him so soon.

“Well, come on,” his social worker teased. “You don’t want to keep them waiting.”

Vegeta nodded and went to the kitchen with the social worker.

“Oh, you must be Vegeta,” a blonde woman stated frantically. “It’s so nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too?” Vegeta said unsure.

The lavender-haired man chuckled. “Please excuse my wife,” he said. “She gets a little excited about, well, everything.”

Vegeta felt a little more at ease around the two. They asked him questions about what school he went to, if he played any sports, what his interests were, and other information about himself.

“Well, would you like to come see our home, today, Vegeta?” the blonde asked.

“Dear, I think we should tell him who we are first,” the man suggested.

“Oh, you’re right, dear. Well, I’m Bunny Briefs, and my husband is Trunks Briefs. We have a daughter named Bulma.”

Vegeta was surprised, not only at the fact that this was one of the wealthiest families in the world that was interested in him, but that they also had a daughter he had never heard of.

“So, my boy,” Dr. Briefs started, “would you like to come with us for the day?”

Vegeta nodded. He’d be an idiot to turn a family away, especially one with such nice people.

* * *

Vegeta was amazed by the size of their home. In all honesty, with the amount of rooms he counted from one wing, all the children at the foster home could fit here with their own room and still have a ton left over.

After they showed him around, Bulma had been getting home from a friend’s house.

“Hi mom, hi dad, I’m home,” she greeted when she entered the kitchen. She was surprised to find that they weren’t alone. “Who are you?”

“Bulma, this is Vegeta. You know how we told you we were considering taking someone in, right?” Bulma nodded, still not really sure what they meant. “Well, he’s going to be staying with us for a while, if he wants to.”

Bulma turned to Vegeta and smiled. She held out her hand for him to shake. “I’m Bulma.”

Vegeta took her outstretched hand and a ghost of a smile appeared on his face. “Vegeta.”

“I hope you decide to stay. It’ll be really fun to have someone else my age here.”

Vegeta was slightly amused and felt a lot better about everything. This girl made him feel like this was definitely a welcoming environment. “I think I will.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters

“Hey, no fair,” Bulma whined while she and Vegeta were playing a game.

Vegeta chuckled. “That move was entirely fair. Get over it.”

Bulma stuck her tongue out at him before smiling. It had been a few months since Vegeta was taken into the Briefs’ home. Doctor and Mrs. Briefs were at a weekend conference and the two teenagers were left alone.

“What time do you think they’ll be back?” Bulma asked.

Vegeta shrugged. “Beats me. Why?”

“Wanna watch a movie?” Vegeta nodded and the two ended their game and went to watch a movie. Vegeta rolled his eyes when he realized she was putting in a chick flick.

“Do we really?” he grumbled. Bulma giggled, put the DVD in, and took a seat next to him. She leaned against him and he put his arm around her to get more comfortable.

It got to a scene in the movie that Bulma really liked, the moment where the girl confessed her feelings to the boy and they shared a kiss. Bulma looked over to Vegeta, who was forcing himself to sit through this with her, and blushed. She had started liking him about a month ago, but was afraid to say anything.

Vegeta eventually looked down to her and his brow was raised in curiosity. Bulma blushed knowing that she had been caught staring at him and looked away, shaking her head. Vegeta smiled and pulled her in for a hug. He had been growing fond of her and didn’t mind her little quirks.

Bulma looked up at him and the two stared at each other for a few minutes before Bulma gave Vegeta a quick kiss on the lips. Vegeta was confused about her action, but he couldn’t actually say that it was an unwelcomed one. He smiled and decided to reciprocate her action, though it lasted longer. Bulma felt her nerves leave her and she kissed back.

* * *

“Well that was an enjoyable conference,” Mrs. Briefs said to her husband before they entered the house.

“Yes, we got a lot done,” Dr. Briefs agreed.

When they opened the door, they were shocked to find Bulma and Vegeta making out on the couch. The two hadn’t heard them come in.

“What’s going on here?” The two teens shot away from each other at the sound at Bulma’s father’s booming voice.

Mrs. Briefs smiled and started chattering away about how good the two were together and ran off somewhere to do God knows what; however, her husband didn’t feel the same way that his wife did and Vegeta could tell. Vegeta told Bulma to go help her mother so that he and Dr. Briefs could talk. Bulma didn’t want to leave the two alone, noting the serious aura in the room, but reluctantly agreed.

“You know that I am not happy to find you two here like this after coming home from a business trip, correct?” Vegeta nodded. “You just broke a lot of my trust right now.” Vegeta flinched at the statement and let him continue. “So you realize what’s going to happen?” Vegeta shook his head. He didn’t know what to expect. “Effective tomorrow, you will be going back.” Vegeta looked at him in shock.

“W-why?” he asked hoarsely. Why would he send him back to an unsure future? Why would he be that angry and hateful?

“Because I can’t have you corrupting my daughter when I go away on business trips. Go start packing your things. You’re going back tomorrow.”

Vegeta nodded and Dr. Briefs left him alone in the living room. He stayed there and thought a bit about what had just happened. Bulma came back in with a smile on her face.

“I think my mother is clinically insane,” Bulma stated, snapping Vegeta out of his thoughts.

“Why do you say that?” he asked trying not to sound hurt around her.

“She’s already pulling out magazines to pick out china patterns,” Bulma said chuckling. She thought Vegeta would join her, but he looked more defeated than entertained. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” he lied, “nothing’s wrong.”

* * *

The next day Bulma was getting ready to go hang out with one of her friends. Vegeta hesitated entering her room, but he had to see her before her father forced him to leave.

“Oh, hey Vegeta, give me one second to get this necklace on,” Bulma said. Vegeta walked over to her, took the necklace, and assisted her with it. She turned to face him. “Thank you.” Vegeta didn’t say anything, but just gave her a hug. “Vegeta, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’ll see you later,” he lied.

Bulma didn’t buy it, but she wouldn’t fight him either. “Well, alright then. See ya.”

Little did she know that would be the last time she would see him.

“Hey, mom, I’m back. Do you know where Vegeta is?” Bulma called while walking into the kitchen. She found her mother in tears in front of the sink. “Hey, mom, w-what’s wrong?”

“B-Bulma sweetie,” her mother said through her tears, “Vegeta isn’t here anymore.”

“What do you mean he isn’t here anymore? Is he okay?” Bulma asked, starting to get worried about her closest friend.

“He’s fine,” Dr. Briefs replied, entering the kitchen. “He’s just back at the foster home.”

“What?” Bulma shouted. “Why?”

“He was a bad influence on you, so I sent him back,” her father answered.

“No he wasn’t!” Bulma exclaimed. She then thought about what happened the previous night. “Is it about last night, because I kissed him! I started it, not him. He shouldn’t be punished for something I did.”

“Where that may be, I can’t have two teenagers doing stuff like that when I am not around. This discussion is over.” With that, Dr. Briefs left the kitchen.

“Mom?” Bulma called out. Her mother knew what she was asking.

“I didn’t know, either. I just found out when I came home from grocery shopping.”

Bulma nodded and excused herself. She went up into her room, locked her door, and just cried. It wasn’t fair. Bulma decided from that moment that she would never forgive her father for this.

That was four years ago.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters

“ _Hey Bulma, excited about the first day of our last year of high school?”_ her friend Chi Chi asked over the phone.

Bulma sighed. “I guess. I can’t wait to get out of here.” Bulma held the phone with her cheek as she started working on an outfit for the next day.

“ _Why, Bulma? Your parents love you.”_

“Chi, we’ve been over this. I’m good with my mom, but I’m never going to get along with my dad.”

“ _Bulma, he’s been trying really hard to say he’s sorry. Didn’t he get you a car last year?”_

Bulma glared out her window to the offending vehicle. “Yeah, and I haven’t driven it. It’s a guilt present.”

_“You always say that. What does he have to feel guilty for?”_

“That reminds me,” Bulma said to change the subject, “I need a ride tomorrow. Actually, can stay at your place tonight?”

“ _Okay, I’ll bite. What now?”_

“My dad is trying to force himself on me and wants to drive me to school tomorrow so we can ‘talk.’ I’m not in the mood for that.”

 _“Oh fine,”_ Chi Chi reluctantly agreed. “ _I’ll help you, but one day I will get you to tell me what happened between you guys.”_

“It’s been four years, Chi. That’s never going to happen.”

“ _Well, just so you know, tomorrow my boyfriend and his friend are riding with us.”_

“Oh, yeah, how are you and Goku doing?”

“ _Well, would you look at the time. Gotta go. See you later.”_

Bulma hung up her cell phone and continued sorting through her clothes. She settled for a short, white skirt and a baby blue top. She threw that outfit, plus some makeup in her overnight bag and took that and her backpack with her downstairs. She threw her cell phone and charger into her purse and took out a pen to write her mother a note saying she was spending the night at Chi Chi’s.

She was stopped at the door by her father’s business partner’s son and neighbor.

“Hey, Bulma, where are you off to?” he asked.

“None of your business, Yamcha. Out of my way.”

“Do you need a ride?” he pressed. Her father had told him to watch out for the possibility of his daughter running away. In all honestly, the elder Briefs hoped that he would one day be with his daughter and for that to happen, they needed to be close. Bulma wouldn’t have that.

“Look, I don’t care what my father has told you. Just leave me the hell alone. I’m going to hang out with my friend, so move out of my way or I will file harassment charges on you.”

Yamcha made an audible gulp and stepped out of her way. He knew she meant what she said by the look in her eyes and she had already done it once before. Her father had taken care of everything and blamed it on some mental illness Bulma didn’t have. Bulma didn’t know that, though.

“Hey, Bulma, you okay?” Chi Chi asked when Bulma came into her house.

“Don’t ask!” Bulma yelled, slamming herself into the guest room.

Chi Chi sighed. She wished she could understand why her friend was so angry, but maybe this would be the year she could convince her friend to open up about it.

* * *

“So, what do you think?” Goku asked Vegeta after entering an empty room.

“Better than what I’ve had,” Vegeta admitted. “And you’re all sure your dad is okay with this?”

“Uh-huh,” Goku replied with a smile. “Mom talked everything over with him and since you’re seventeen now, the foster home said it was fine since we can all pretty much take care of ourselves.”

Vegeta nodded and settled his duffle bag down on the bed. He also had a small suitcase with him full of some clothes. He had been with thirteen different families for the last four years and it was extremely difficult for him, especially when one of the families moved out of town. That family was the only one he acted out with because he just wanted to go back to his hometown and hang out with his only friend. Everyone else just didn’t want to be bothered after a few months.

Now he was seventeen and, like Goku had said, he was old enough to take care of himself. Plus he would be eighteen in a couple of months so it really didn’t matter. He had a job at a sporting goods store and got fairly decent grades for someone holding a job and playing on the football team. However, now he’d be transferring to his best friend’s school and he’d have to work even harder to prove himself.

“Vegeta, are you even listening to me?” Goku asked.

Vegeta sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “What Kakarot?”

“I was just letting you know that we’re going over to my girlfriend’s house tomorrow to get a ride to school.”

“Fine, whatever.”

“Are you okay, Vegeta?” Goku asked in concern.

“I’m fine. I just want to unpack.”

Goku grinned. “Sure, I’ll go get you some sheets and blankets for the bed and the school supplies we got for you.”

“Oh joy,” Vegeta replied with a smirk.

After Goku left him, he started taking his few possessions out of his two bags and putting them away. He had enough clothes to get him through the next four days, just in time for Saturday when Goku’s mother, Fasha, said she wanted to take him clothes shopping.

Vegeta set up his bed and then lied down on it and stared at the ceiling. He still felt a little jumpy about all of this. It’s not like the Sons would send him away again, but after going through all of that for four years, he couldn’t help but have a few trust issues. If he had his way, he would have still been at Capsule Corp. with Bulma. Four years away from her didn’t help lessen the feelings he had for her. He had always told himself it was a stupid crush that got him in trouble, but when he turned sixteen, he realized that he still couldn’t get her out of his mind.

He didn’t know what had become of her over the last few years, where she went to school, if she was with anyone, and it bothered him. Hopefully he’d be able to find her, but after all this time, would she even remember him?


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or the characters

"Come on, Vegeta. Get up!"

Vegeta groaned. He wasn't ready to get out of bed; he was far too comfortable which he hadn't been in quite a while. "Kakarot, go away," Vegeta growled.

"I can't," Goku told him looking dumbfounded. "We need to eat breakfast and then go to Chi Chi's."

That name sounded familiar to Vegeta, but he wasn't sure why. He didn't remember Goku ever telling him his girlfriend's name before. It didn't matter, but Vegeta felt like he should have remembered something about that name.

"Fine, Kakarot," Vegeta said swinging his legs over the bed. "I'm up."

Goku grinned. "Great. Well, I'll see you downstairs. Later."

Vegeta sighed and moved to his dresser to grab a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and then walked into the guest room bathroom. He took a quick shower before getting dressed and then made his way to the kitchen.

"Morning Veggie," Raditz teased.

"Oh shut up," Vegeta grumbled.

"Well someone's not a morning person," Raditz replied laughing at his own joke.

Vegeta rolled his eyes. Of course he wasn't a morning person. "And what, pray tell, are you so fucking happy about at six thirty in the morning?"

"I have a date today."

Vegeta shook his head. "You have a date every day, you stupid player."

"Hey, don't hate. You're just jealous because you've never had a girlfriend."

"Leave him alone, son," Fasha ordered.

"Vegeta, we have to go," Goku said in a hurry while coming into the kitchen.

"Where's the fire, little bro? You haven't even eaten yet."

"Well, apparently they're doing an early assembly at school today for the seniors," Goku explained, "so we have to get over to Chi Chi's now."

There was that feeling again. Vegeta had definitely heard that name before, but it wasn't from Goku. _Strange,_ he thought before just grabbing a protein bar from Goku's mother and following his friend out.

* * *

"I didn't know you could drive, Kakarot," Vegeta said with a smirk.

"Yeah, well Chi Chi got hers first and convinced me that I should get mine, so mom helped me out. What about you, Vegeta?"

"I can drive, but I don't have my license," Vegeta admitted.

"Then how do you know you can drive?" Vegeta didn't answer the question and Goku looked over to his friend with worry. He let it go, seeing as Vegeta clearly wanted the subject to end. "Oh, hey look. We're here."

"I'll wait here," Vegeta replied still staring out the window.

"Um…okay," Goku muttered, getting out of the car.

* * *

Vegeta watched Goku go to his girlfriend's front door and was astonished to see that he knew the girl. It wasn't too hard to figure out. She used to visit Bulma at Capsule Corp. all the time. Vegeta's heart rate quickened when he saw Bulma walk outside and give his best friend a hug. They were chatting a little bit while Vegeta decided to leave. He didn't know why he decided to get away, especially when he had been longing to see her, but he just couldn't see himself seeing her at that moment.

"So you're friend came with you?" Chi Chi asked.

"Yeah, he's really great," Goku replied. "He's living with us now."

"Really?" Bulma asked. "Why?"

"Eh, he's had kind of a challenging life," Goku explained rubbing the back of his head. "This is his first reprieve in a really long time."

Goku and Chi Chi started flirting and Bulma decided to start moving for Goku's car. Just as she did, she saw someone she hadn't seen in a long time running down the street.

"Vegeta…?" she whispered.

Goku and Chi Chi made their way over to the car. "Goku, where's your friend?"

"Hm, I don't know Chi," Goku admitted. "He probably got tired of waiting. We'll meet him there. Hey, Bulma, you okay? You look kind of pale."

"I'm fine, Goku," Bulma lied. She got in the car with them and listened as the happy couple prattled on the entire way to the school. She thought about Vegeta the entire time. _He does blame me,_ she told herself.

* * *

Vegeta got to the school and found the office so he could get his schedule. He also had to introduce himself to the principal since it was his first day there. The principal gave him his locker information and Vegeta left the office to find his locker. It didn't take him long to find it and when he did…

"Vegeta?" He was shocked to see Bulma for a second time, rummaging through the locker that was next to his.

He kept his surprise hidden though and crossed his arms, a habit he developed for self-preservation. "Bulma," he acknowledged, nodding his head at her. It was then he noticed the tears in her eyes. "What's wrong?" he asked sounding slightly concerned.

"I'm sorry," she said crying into her locker. "I'm so, so sorry."

"For what?" His brow quirked in confusion.

Bulma looked at him as if he committed a crime. "How can you ask me that when the first moment you see me, you run away? You made it clear that you hate me and I don't blame you. I'm the reason my father sent you away."

Vegeta was happy there was no one else in the hallway to see her this upset. He knelt down next to her and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Where the hell did you get the idea that I blame you?" he asked. "Neither one of us was at fault."

"You're just saying that," Bulma accused. "You didn't want to see me."

Vegeta chuckled at how ridiculous she was being.

"That's the furthest from the truth," he told her. "I was just taken by surprise." He wouldn't have admitted that to her, but he did not want her thinking that he hated her when he knew in his heart that he cared about her. "I didn't know how you'd react to seeing me again."

Bulma looked over to him and wiped away her tears. "Really?" she asked hopefully.

He smirked at her. "Really." Vegeta helped her up off the floor and they started walking towards the gym for the early morning assembly. "And Bulma…" She tilted her head and waited for him to speak. "It's good to see you again."


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or the characters

As the day progressed, Bulma found that Vegeta was in most of her classes, especially the AP courses. She was only slightly surprised, more so of the fact that she got to spend so much time with him after being separated for so long. First locker neighbors, then same schedule except for the fact that Vegeta didn't have to take gym since he would be on the football team. He had a study hall instead.

Later, at the end of the day, Chi Chi and Goku went to go meet Bulma at her locker. Goku was surprised to see Vegeta at the locker next to hers, but gave his signature grin.

"Bulma, I see you met my friend, Vegeta," Goku said.

Bulma and Vegeta looked over to him. "Actually, I already know him."

"Really?" Goku asked.

"Yes, Kakarot, really."

"Oh wow, so I guess you were the girl, huh?" Goku asked.

"What do you mean?" both Bulma and Chi Chi asked. Bulma frowned thinking that maybe Vegeta told Goku that he blamed her despite what he said earlier.

"Yeah, he said he used to live with this girl's family before he got sent back for whatever reason. He said he really missed her."

Vegeta glared at Goku for revealing that last piece of information; however, he did notice Bulma's face soften and brighten up. _There's the girl I remember._

"You missed me?" Bulma asked, smiling brightly at Vegeta.

"Of course I did," he replied. "Other than Kakarot, you were my only friend as a child."

"Wait, so is that the reason you're so pissed off at your father? Because he sent Goku's friend back to a foster home?" Chi Chi asked, obviously knowing a little about the story (from Goku of course).

"Chi Chi, do not start on that again. It doesn't matter why I don't get along with my father. He made his bed, so he can lie in it."

Vegeta was surprised to hear Bulma talk so coldly about her father. He remembered how much of a "daddy's little girl" she was when they were younger. Did all of that really change because he was sent away? Vegeta, himself, felt cheated by her father, but he never wanted their relationship to be ruined because of him.

"So are you ready to go home, Vegeta?" Goku asked brining Vegeta out of his thoughts.

Vegeta shook his head. "I'm going to go for a walk."

Bulma looked between the two. "You're living with Goku now?" she asked.

Vegeta looked over to her. "Yes, just moved in yesterday."

Bulma flashed a sad smile. "I'm glad you're with a friend." Then she shut her locker door and started heading to the exit of the building.

"Okay, Vegeta, what happened?" Chi Chi asked. He gave her a "what the hell are you talking about" look. "I've been trying to get Bulma to tell me why she hates her father so much for the last four years. He really tries to be a good father, but she never uses anything he gives her, so you're going to tell me right now why my friend is so distant."

Vegeta glared at Chi Chi. "That's our business, not yours." Vegeta sped towards the exit in hopes that he would catch up to Bulma, leaving his stunned friend and his annoying girlfriend behind.

* * *

Vegeta managed to catch up to Bulma, but outside of Capsule Corp. which wasn't too far from the school. Bulma jumped when she felt him grab her arm, but relaxed.

"Vegeta, what do you want?" Bulma asked sadly.

"What did Kakarot's girlfriend mean when she said you were angry with your father?"

"Well…"

"Bulma?"

Bulma and Vegeta turned to see Yamcha standing on the sidewalk. "What do you want, Yamcha?" Bulma asked with her voice full of venom.

"What are you doing here with this guy?" Yamcha interrogated.

"First of all, this is my house and Vegeta is my friend, so what does it matter to you?"

"Vegeta?" Yamcha asked. He had heard of this guy from Bulma's father. She would never know how guilty her father felt for sending the boy away. "Well, nice seeing you again."

"Stay away from me, Yamcha, or I swear, I will file harassment charges again."

Yamcha shivered but knew that the cops wouldn't believe her a second time around. He left and returned to his home next door.

* * *

"Who was that loser?" Vegeta asked after Bulma let them in.

"The guy my father's trying to get me with," Bulma replied. "He's a spineless stalker. If my father hadn't helped him, he'd probably still be in jail or whatever."

"Your dad helped him?"

"Yes, my _father,"_ she emphasized, "had asked him to like…watch me…or something. Guess he thought I would run away."

"Why?" Vegeta asked, although he had already guessed it.

Bulma sighed. "After I came home that day and found out you were gone, he and I never really got along. I mean, the whole thing was my fault and he said you were this bad influence on me. Mom wanted us together. When I got home, I found her crying in the kitchen and she said you weren't there anymore and I was so worried. I thought something had happened to you and then my father came in and blamed you. I wanted to run away, but I didn't want to upset mom. And then he just kept buying me stuff, thinking that could make me forgive him…but it's not that easy."

"You're wrong, you know," Vegeta told her. Bulma looked surprised. "I already told you that it wasn't your fault. I felt the same way about you and I'm the one that continued after you kissed me."

Bulma sat down on the couch and leaned back. Vegeta stared down at her before sitting down next to her. He could see her trying to fight back tears and pulled her into a hug and rubbed her back comfortingly.

"I missed this," Bulma whispered in Vegeta's ear.

"Me too," he whispered back.

They moved away from each other and looked into each other's eyes. Vegeta smirked at her and, this time, he initiated the kiss. When he pulled away he chuckled at Bulma's wide-eyed expression. "We're even now."

"Vegeta, what if my father had walked in then," Bulma asked, not that she really cared.

"It doesn't matter, anymore," Vegeta answered. "I don't live here and we're both seventeen. It's a completely different situation."

Bulma's worry disappeared and she smiled. "You have a point. But I don't want you to get in trouble again."

Vegeta flinched, but Bulma didn't notice. "Trust me, Bulma. Whatever your father can do to me is nothing compared to what I've been through."

"What do you mean?" Bulma asked.

Vegeta was about to say something when Bulma's parents walked through the door with groceries. Bulma looked over to her parents, slightly alarmed. Her father's mouth was hanging open in shock, and her mother dropped the bags she was carrying and ran over to hug Vegeta.

"Oh Vegeta, it's been so long," she said excitedly. "I've missed you. When did you get here?"

"He walked me home from school," Bulma half-lied. "We're locker neighbors and in all of the same classes except gym."

"Oh my, that's wonderful!" Mrs. Briefs exclaimed. "Vegeta, you must stay for dinner and we can all catch up."

"Um…" Vegeta mumbled unsure. He looked over to Dr. Briefs who looked sad. Dr. Briefs nodded to him. "Sure, I'll stay. I just need to call my friend's mother and tell her I won't be home for dinner."

"Oh of course. I'll go get started on dinner right away."

"I'm going to go put my school bag in my room," Bulma said to Vegeta. "You'll be okay?"

"Of course I will be," Vegeta replied as if it should be obvious.

Bulma flashed him a smile, but refused to look at her father as she went upstairs.

* * *

Vegeta and Dr. Briefs were left alone in the living room and sat in an awkward silence. Dr. Briefs spoke up first.

"I'm sorry," he said.

Vegeta shrugged. "Happens. No big deal."

"I…I tried to get you back," Dr. Briefs confessed.

Vegeta looked shocked. "What?"

"I was too late…someone had adopted you."

Vegeta shivered. He knew what he was talking about. He had gone to twelve different families, but for the most part, he either didn't like them and did everything he could to make them hate him; or the families had already taken in many kids and it just never worked out. The thirteenth family, however, was the worst one ever. Because of that family, the Sons decided to adopt him.

"Oh," was all Vegeta could say as he forced himself to repress the memories of the last few years. "Why didn't you tell Bulma?"

"She wouldn't have believed me," Dr. Briefs replied. "I broke her trust that day. I regret it."

"I think you broke her trust when you tried to get her together with that stalker," Vegeta stated, but not disrespectfully.

"You met Yamcha?" Dr. Briefs asked.

Vegeta nodded. "He was waiting for her when we got back."

Dr. Briefs thought about that for a while. Back when Bulma filed harassment charges on the boy, he just thought she had been acting out. He never thought she was really being stalked by the boy. "I had no idea," Dr. Briefs muttered sadly.

Vegeta actually felt a little bad for Dr. Briefs, but not as much as he did for Bulma. Was her father that oblivious?

Bulma came down a few minutes later, sat down next to Vegeta, and took his hand. Dr. Briefs couldn't help but notice that for the first time in a while, his daughter wore a smile on her face. Maybe, eventually, everything would work out. After all, he had no intention of separating them again.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters.
> 
> Sorry if this chapter jumps away from the happy atmosphere that I was creating, but everyone has been dying to know what happened to Vegeta before now. It’s a little angsty, but hey, Vegeta’s been OOC, so here’s a nice switch if you don’t like OOC Veggie as much as I do (he’s still pretty OOC though, only because he’s not evil and has a heart).

Vegeta was lying in bed, staring up at the ceiling. He could hear painful cries and see the destruction, even on the white surface. He questioned his sanity on numerous occasions, but he would never admit to anyone that he had a problem. He never wanted to talk to a psychiatrist about this stuff. Besides, if he did, most likely he’d be punished for the crimes he committed.

It was never a choice; he would have to keep reminding himself of that fact. His adoptive father was a monster. He would have believed it if someone had told him that the man was the devil himself.

_“Vegeta, it’s your turn,” the man said._

_“No, I refuse,” Vegeta had said. He hated when he was given a job._

_The man glared at him. “You will obey me,” he said menacingly. Vegeta shivered. He knew that if he wanted him dead, it would happen. That’s what he would be doing, anyway._

_“W-who?” Vegeta asked._

_“Here’s the address,” the man replied, throwing him a notepad. Vegeta looked at the address and gasped. He knew the people that lived there, weakening his resolve. Before he could change his mind, he turned to leave. “Oh, and Vegeta?” Vegeta stopped dead in his tracks. “Don’t call for help this time.”_

_Vegeta swallowed nervously. “Y-yes, Frieza.” He didn’t look back._

Vegeta got up and looked outside his friend’s home, his new home. Thankfully, Frieza had been found out by the police before he could force anymore of his adopted children to commit the crimes. That day, all the children were sent back to foster care. The ones who were eighteen were convicted, but they did something noble for once…they said that the children had nothing to do with it.

_Vegeta made his way to his classmate’s house with the can. He tried not to cry, but he couldn’t help it. He was about to ruin someone’s life…more than one person…and this time, it was someone he knew._

_The boy’s name was Broly, and he was a very good…acquaintance…of Vegeta’s. Under normal circumstances, Vegeta wouldn’t even think to do this. Unfortunately, his father had to get involved with Frieza and that was never a good thing._

_“Dad, I’d really like you to read my essay.”_

_His father turned to face him and smiled. “Sure, let me go over it with you.”_

_Vegeta was breaking inside. How could he even think about following through with the order? He swallowed the bile that rose in his throat and made his way into the backyard. He took the can, lit the paper sticking from the inside, and threw it through an opened window._

_There was no turning back after that. It wasn’t the first time he had followed through, nor would it be the last time, but the cries of his friend and his family were enough to make him lose his mind._

Frieza was an arson, plain and simple, and when he was crossed by anyone, he would have his adopted children do his dirty work, unless he felt like doing it himself. He was the head of a drug ring, and when his customers stopped buying, whether they didn’t like the product or were trying to quit, like Broly’s father, he would “make them pay,” as he always said.

Vegeta decided to go for a walk alone, to clear his head. The memories were starting to be too much for him to handle on his own, but he could never tell anyone about the things he did. If he did, he’d definitely be tried as an adult at this point and he would bring down about five other innocents. Zarbon, who had been the one to put the blame on all of the “adults,” used to call them that. Frieza was wealthy and bribed enough judges to adopt as many children as he did. Vegeta’s adoption was no exception, the product of a bribe. Adoptions were legally binding and even if they could call child protective services, Frieza would have made everything look wonderful while threatening the children’s lives behind the backs of the social workers.

It wasn’t until Zarbon let himself get caught that Frieza went to jail and the younger kids and teenagers went free.

 _“Don’t ever tell,” Zarbon whispered to the kids as he, Dodoria, and Ginyu were hauled off. Vegeta understood; they all did_.

Vegeta was the oldest of the remaining group. He decided to stick around the foster home for those five and waited until they were with safer families. As far as Vegeta knew, none of them ever talked about what had happened, but that was about a year ago. Who knows what they’ve said by now?

Vegeta ended up by a river and stared at the moon reflecting in the waters and sighed. Things were good now. He was living with his best friend, away from the monster he despised; he was safe, no longer fearing for his life or getting another order; and he was reunited with Bulma, and her father was okay with it. Vegeta was sure that if Dr. Briefs knew the full truth that he would want Bulma as far away from him as possible. That was another reason he couldn’t say anything. He would lose her again.

Part of Vegeta blamed himself. If he hadn’t been a jerk to all of the other families, he wouldn’t have ended up with Frieza. The family before Frieza was one of those that he purposely pissed off. If he had just been nicer for another week, maybe he would have been back at Capsule Corp., since Dr. Briefs tried to get him back.

He sat down against a tree and sighed, forcing himself not to dwell on what-ifs.

“Vegeta?”

Vegeta jumped when he heard his name and then looked to see where the voice was coming from. When he saw it was Bulma, he relaxed. “Hey,” he greeted.

Bulma could hear the sadness in his voice. “Are you okay?”

Vegeta didn’t answer. “What are you doing here?”

Bulma put her hand on her hips. “Why should I answer your question when you’re avoiding mine?”

Vegeta would have smirked, but he was too lost at the moment. “I couldn’t sleep so I went for a walk. You?”

“I come here to think,” Bulma admitted.

“To think?” Vegeta repeated. Bulma nodded. “About what?”

“Well, about my father and what’s going on between me and him. I feel guilty, Vegeta. I love my father, but I’m angry with him. The anger and hurt never left after the day he sent you away. But he’s been trying to win me over and now…I just don’t know.”

“I do,” Vegeta replied. “You should forgive him and move on.” He looked out into the water. “Life is too short to hold onto a grudge. It could end at any moment, burning in fiery embers.” Vegeta didn’t even hear himself say anything, but wondered what he had said when he saw Bulma’s perplexed expression. “Don’t worry about it,” he said, hoping that it wasn’t anything too bad.

“Vegeta, why are you out here?”

“I already told you, I-“

“Don’t give me that BS, Vegeta. Why couldn’t you sleep? You look a wreck. Are you sick?”

She put her hand to his forehead and Vegeta blushed. He wanted to push her away; he felt too disgusted with himself to let her anywhere near him right now. All he had to do was sleep it off and tomorrow he would pretend it was a dream like he normally did.

“I have to go,” Vegeta said as he moved his head away from her hand.

Vegeta ran away from her as fast as he could to get back to Goku’s house. He didn’t realize that she had her bike with her. She followed him, but not too close for him to know. She stopped when Vegeta tripped over a tree’s root.

He just lied there and looked up to the sky. “I am sorry, my friend. It was all my fault.”

Bulma felt her heart clench. Who was he apologizing to and for what? And why was he acting like he did something so unforgivable.

Well, she was his friend too, and one thing about Bulma was she hated seeing her friends suffer. With one last thought as Vegeta got up and continued, hope went through her mind. _Whatever happened, I will help you._


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters.

The next day, Vegeta didn’t show up to school and Bulma was worried. When she saw Goku, she asked him about it. Goku told her Vegeta wasn’t feeling well that morning and opted to stay home. Bulma decided that she would go visit after school. She wanted to make sure that he was okay, especially after how he had acted the night before.

* * *

Vegeta waited for Fasha to leave for work and Raditz to go to class. Then he got dressed and took a bus into the downtown area. He always did this a few times a year. Why?

“I’m here to see Broly,” Vegeta stated to a lobbyist.

The woman smiled. “He’s in the den. Here’s your visitor’s pass.”

Vegeta took the card from her and went into the den. Some little kids were running around and nearly crashed into him. He narrowly dodged them before he spotted Broly by the window, just staring outside. As if the teen sensed Vegeta’s presence, he rolled his wheelchair back to face him and smiled.

It always made Vegeta feel worse to see his once athletic friend in a wheelchair, all because of him. But what was worse was that the boy could no longer talk.

He wrote down on his notepad, **“Hi, Vegeta, how are you?”**

Vegeta didn’t reply and Broly frowned as he watched his friend sit down in the seat across from him. Broly knew the truth about what had happened. Vegeta had never mentioned it, but Broly knew. There would have been no way that Vegeta could have known about the fire unless he had been the one who set it. However, Broly didn’t blame Vegeta, especially since he was still blaming himself for it so many years later.

**“You shouldn’t feel bad. Dad knew Frieza was gunning for him.”**

“It doesn’t matter,” Vegeta replied, knowing that Broly knew. “I’m still responsible.”

**“No, you’re as much a victim as I, if not more so.”**

Vegeta looked away in shame. “How can you say that?”

Broly wrote something else down and then slip the notepad into Vegeta’s line of sight.

**“Because not only did you save me, you are suffering a lot more than I am.”**

Vegeta shook his head. Broly was too naïve. One day he’d hate him, that much he knew. It didn’t matter that he had saved him. He caused the fire and by the time he got inside, it was already too late. Broly’s parents were already dead and Broly himself was trapped under a pillar. In the amount of time it took for Vegeta to get him out from under the pillar, the weight had already crushed Broly’s legs and later they found out that he probably couldn’t walk again. The smoke had also damaged his lungs and vocal cords.

“I took your voice, your ability to walk, and your parents away from you. How the hell do you justify that I am suffering more than you?”

 **“You’re depressed,”** Broly wrote. **“You’re hurting. You blame yourself, but it wasn’t your fault. You TRIED. That’s more than anyone else would have done. They would have left, but you didn’t. I’m alive because of you. It wasn’t your fault.”**

“That’s where you’re wrong, my friend,” Vegeta responded. “That’s where you’re wrong.”

* * *

Bulma made it home to Capsule Corp. later in the day and, of course, Yamcha was waiting for her. She sighed in disdain.

“Why must you always be here when I come home?” she asked dryly. “Can’t you realize I just want to be left alone?”

Yamcha glared at her. “Not when that guy brought you home yesterday.”

“Vegeta has been my friend for a long time.”

“Then why hasn’t he been here before?”

Bulma’s expression darkened. “That is NONE of your business. You have no right to ask.”

Bulma moved past him to get to her door. As she searched for her key, Yamcha forcefully grabbed her arm.

“Let go,” Bulma whispered.

“No,” Yamcha growled quietly.

His answer infuriated Bulma. She turned around him and slapped him in the face. The sound rang through Yamcha’s head and it took him a minute to register that Bulma had slapped him. When it finally did hit him, his eyes narrowed and he clenched his fists. Bulma cringed under the force of his glare. She had never seen him like this before.

“Yamcha?” she questioned.

“Shut up!” he snapped. Bulma cringed again.

_This is going to end badly…_

* * *

Vegeta got off a bus somewhere near Capsule Corp. He decided that he wanted to see Bulma.

When he got to Capsule Corp., the lights were off which was strange considering school had ended a few hours earlier. Vegeta knocked on the door, but no one answered it. He tried the handle and found the door unlocked. If Bulma was home, he knew she wouldn’t mind him letting himself in.

When Vegeta got inside, he turned on the light and saw Bulma’s stuff sprawled out on the floor. It made him feel a little uneasy. Bulma was too much of a neat freak to leave a mess like this.

He walked upstairs and called her name quietly, but received no answer. He called her again, a little louder and heard a muffled sigh coming from her room.

Vegeta entered Bulma’s room and found her resting on her bed. The muffled sigh must have been her yawning in her sleep. Vegeta chuckled a bit. She was just so adorable. He moved closer to get a better look and was slightly alarmed. There was a bruise on her arm that looked like she was grabbed; and there was a bruise on her face.

Vegeta took his hand and gently brushed her cheek. Bulma stirred and Vegeta retracted his hand.

“Mm, Vegeta?” Bulma called out.

“Yeah,” Vegeta replied. “What happened?”

“What do you mean?” she asked dreamily.

“You have bruises,” he told her. “What happened?”

“Oh that,” she replied nonchalantly. “Just had a run in with my stalker.”

“He hit you?”

“In his defense, I kind of hit him first,” Bulma explained. “I still hate him.”

“He had no right to hit you, no matter what you did,” Vegeta retorted. “Are you okay?”

Bulma laughed. “Of course. That guy throws some weak-ass punches. I’ve taken worse hits playing ultimate ping pong in gym.”

“Uh, ultimate ping pong?” Vegeta asked nervously.

Bulma grinned. “Oh, just you wait. It’s a lot of fun. Totally made up.”

Vegeta smirked. This was the Bulma he remembered: sweet, kind, funny. She was unique.

“Sorry I wasn’t in school today,” he said. “Just so you know it had nothing to do with you.”

Bulma nodded. “I hope not. You’d tell me if it did, right?”

“Yes.”

Bulma turned over and scooted a bit so that Vegeta could lie down. He looked at her curiously.

“You can join me, you know. I’m kind of tired.”

“I should go,” Vegeta replied. Bulma turned to face him, a little bit of worry shining through her eyes.

“Please stay…at least until my parents come back.”

Vegeta hesitated, but eventually agreed. He got onto the bed and curled up next to Bulma. He couldn’t help but smile. It was nice to know that some things never change.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters.

It didn’t take much for Bulma’s parents to find out what had happened. When they found Bulma and Vegeta hanging out watching a movie, they were shocked by her bruises, but knew that Vegeta would have never done that.

“Who?” Dr. Briefs asked.

Bulma frowned. She was trying not to blame her father for it, but he did bring Yamcha into her life. She decided not to say anything knowing he’d feel guiltier even though she was working on forgiving him. When neither teenager said anything, Dr. Briefs knew and told himself not to let Yamcha near his little girl ever again.

“Vegeta, would you like to stay for dinner?” Bunny asked.

Vegeta shrugged. “Sure, why not?”

Bulma leaned into him for a hug and the two smiled. Dr. Briefs couldn’t help but feel happy that Vegeta had somehow managed to squirm his way back into their lives. He knew with him, Bulma would be safe.

* * *

Later, Vegeta went home and pondered everything going on. Whenever he was around Bulma, he felt a lot better and was distracted from reliving his most painful memories. Was that even possible? Also, it felt like he and Bulma had just picked up where they had left off, as if they were never separated. They never said they were in any type of relationship; it just happened and Vegeta was glad for that. He was never any good at putting his emotions into words. What good did words do anyway, unless you took action to make them true?

“So you and Bulma, huh?” Goku asked leaning against Vegeta’s door. Vegeta mentally cursed himself for not shutting his door.

“What of it?” Vegeta responded, his voice laced with irritation.

“Vegeta, I know she’s the girl,” Goku replied. “You really cared about her back then, and stuff like that doesn’t just go away.”

“If you don’t want me to pummel you into the floor, I suggest you leave me alone, Kakarot,” Vegeta stated with no real venom in his tone. His voice sounded more sad than angry.

“Vegeta, I’m going to tell you what’s been going on, but if you tell Chi Chi I told you, I will make you pay.” Vegeta smirked at his friend’s teasing. Goku smiled but then frowned before continuing. Vegeta frowned too, sensing the seriousness of what his friend was about to tell him. “Bulma spent a year not talking to her father at all, according to Chi Chi. Actually, there was talk about sending her away to an institute, but her mother wouldn’t let it happen, especially after her husband sent you away. Bulma then started talking around him again, but ignored anything he said to her or asked her. He started feeling more guilt and started buying her everything he thought she’d like, but she never used anything. Actually, he got her a car when she turned sixteen, but it’s been sitting in her yard since then. I didn’t tell Chi Chi this, but I actually had Raditz work on driving with her here. Chi Chi’s been trying to figure out how Bulma got her license without ever using her own car.

“When Bulma started talking again, she argued with her father a lot telling him how oblivious he was to her life, so he did something stupid. This guy who worked for him had a son and he tried to play matchmaker. He thought that if Bulma could find someone else she liked, she would get over you and talk to him again, but that didn’t work either because she hated the guy. Chi Chi said that Bulma complained about him stalking her, but she didn’t believe her. I did though and I’ve actually had to scare the guy away on numerous occasions.

“Anyway, long story short, she never did get over you and I can tell she really likes you. I think you should go for it.”

Vegeta sighed and lied back down on his bed, which Goku took as his clue to leave. _I already have,_ Vegeta thought, _but I still don’t deserve it._ And that was how he felt, though he held on to that small strand of hope that he actually did deserve the way Bulma made him feel.

* * *

The next day, Vegeta left for the school early to get some alone time and walk to school. On his way there, he ran into Yamcha and growled at the boy.

“We need to talk,” Yamcha said menacingly.

Vegeta smirked. “Really? About what? There’s nothing that I’d have to talk to a coward like you about. Oh wait, there is one thing.” Next thing Yamcha knew, he was pinned to the ground by Vegeta who was glaring at him. “Next time you lay a hand on her, I’ll make sure to return the favor.” Vegeta pushed himself off of the boy and looked down at him. Yamcha shivered in fear. The cold and emotionless look in Vegeta’s eyes was enough to scare anyone. It made Yamcha wonder what he could have ever been through to make him that stone-cold.

* * *

Vegeta reached the school and started to get his books from the locker. At one point he felt someone behind him and that person put their hands over his eyes. Normally he’d react negatively, but he could tell who it was.

“Now I wonder who would be foolish enough to sneak up on me.” Bulma giggled and let Vegeta turn to face her.

“Morning,” she greeted with a smile. “How’d you sleep last night?”

“Fine,” Vegeta replied. He then looked at her arm and face and saw that the bruises were covered up by makeup. “How are you feeling?”

Bulma shrugged. “Still in some pain, but I’m okay. Like I said, weak-ass punches. Dad feels really bad about the whole thing now and this time HE filed the harassment charges and talked with the jerk’s dad. Hopefully we won’t see him for a long time. Thank God he doesn’t go to this school.”

Vegeta thought about his run-in with the boy earlier and remembered how terrified he was. “I’m sure he’ll keep his distance.”

Bulma smiled and gave Vegeta a quick kiss on the cheek. He stared at her like she was crazy with a small blush covering his face. She giggled again. “What?”

Vegeta cleared his throat and then looked away. “N-nothing. Let’s just get to class.”

“Whatever you say,” she replied walking next to him happily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Yay, cute moments XD I love writing those. I hope you enjoyed the chapter.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters.

Vegeta was starting to adjust to his new life and new routine. Sometimes it felt too surreal for him, since he finally felt safe and stable. The guilt would still eat away at him at times, but now he could actually talk to someone about it. Goku had walked in on him a few times having nightmares about everything. At times, Vegeta would wake up thinking they had to call 9-1-1 to put out a fire. It didn’t take that much to figure out why he was like this and Goku promised Vegeta that he could confide in him.

Since then, Vegeta hadn’t felt a chronic guilt. His friend had been a lot smarter than he thought and he was finally starting to realize that it wasn’t completely his fault and that he did try to protect everyone. He still visited Broly and the other teenager was happy that Vegeta was finally starting to forgive himself like he had already.

Bulma was still completely unaware of his past, but she knew he went through something traumatic. He came home with her a lot and sometimes they would take a short nap together, just happy to be in each other’s presence. Vegeta would have these violent nightmares and Bulma would wake him up before he could say anything. She may have wanted to know what he could be dreaming about, but she would never just let him go through the nightmare just to find out what he’d say.

“Vegeta, please, just talk to me,” Bulma pleaded while Vegeta worked on catching his breath after waking up from yet another nightmare. He looked over to her with doubt covering his face. “It’s me, Vegeta. I won’t judge you. I…I…”

Bulma couldn’t say what she had been feeling for years, but Vegeta needed to know. He needed to hear her say the words he had been longing to hear for the majority of his life. “You what?” Vegeta pressed gently, not wanting to scare her or make her feel more uncomfortable.

Bulma looked at him, tears shining in her worried eyes. Vegeta pulled her in for a hug and placed a warm and gentle kiss on her lips. Bulma smiled and looked up to him. “I love you, Vegeta.”

Vegeta let out a sigh of relief. That had been what he wanted to hear. He didn’t think he could say the words back, but he told her he felt the same way and that was enough for her. Bulma’s question was forgotten as the two teenagers focused on their confessions and not on the nightmares that plagued Vegeta. Everything at that moment felt perfect.

But we all know that perfection doesn’t last very long.

* * *

Goku and Vegeta were leaving football practice when they saw someone standing at the front gate waiting for someone. Vegeta froze and stared into the eyes of the man that pretty much saved him from going to jail.

“Vegeta, who is that?” Goku asked.

“It’s nothing, Kakarot,” Vegeta lied. “I’ll catch up with you later.”

Goku didn’t want to leave his friend with some stranger, but he knew he couldn’t argue with him either and left, well, left to hide and listen in.

“Zarbon,” Vegeta said walking up to the man. Zarbon did not look happy, but he looked more apologetic than anything else.

“They know, Vegeta,” he said, “about all of us.”

Vegeta forced his outer appearance to look calm, but he was panicking inside. “H-how?”

Zarbon let out a venomous growl. “That bastard made enemies on the inside and was killed by one of them. It was in his damn will that records of every crime he ever committed, or had his ‘children’ commit would be sent to the police.”

“You were released though,” Vegeta pointed out. It couldn’t have been as bad as Zarbon was alluding.

“I served my time, Vegeta,” Zarbon said. “Dodoria and Cui still have a few more months. Now, you remaining six have to be put on trial.”

“But we were kids at that time,” Vegeta argued. He didn’t know much about the law, but he knew kids couldn’t be sentenced to jail time.

“You won’t go to jail,” Zarbon agreed, “but there still has to be a trial. I’m sure you’ll all get off with community service or something, but I would still let whoever your adopted you know what’s going on so they can get you a lawyer.”

Vegeta shook his head. “I can do this on my own,” he replied unconvincingly. He honestly didn’t believe that, but even if Kakarot had known and accepted him, it didn’t mean everyone else would and then he’d lose everything he had left.

Zarbon frowned and put his hand on Vegeta’s shoulder. “Look kid, this isn’t a game. It’s not easy.”

Vegeta’s temper got the better at him. He smacked Zarbon’s hand away and started shouting. “You think I think this is easy? I have to deal with what I did every day of my life! I get no peace of mind, ever, because I know I’m responsible for the death of two families, not including my friend’s parents! I’m not an idiot; I know how bad this is! But I deserve to be punished, even if it wasn’t my fault because I’m still responsible!”

Zarbon watched as the younger teen broke down into tears. Just then, he saw the boy who was with him earlier and a blue-haired girl who looked completely shocked. The girl started running over to them, and Zarbon didn’t know if he could trust her. He blocked her path to Vegeta.

“Let me see him,” Bulma demanded.

“No,” Zarbon replied. At first Bulma thought he was being a jerk, but then she saw how guarded he seemed. He was trying to protect Vegeta.

“I’m his friend,” she told him. “Please.”

“Bulma?” Zarbon turned to see Vegeta, still letting the tears fall, but now he was looking up at the girl in shock, but also in hope. He let her go over to the young innocent and walked over to Vegeta’s other friend.

Bulma knelt down next to him and pulled him to her. She rubbed his back comfortingly and let her own tears fall. “Why didn’t you tell me…us?” He knew she was referring to her family.

“You would have all hated me. Hell, I hate me,” he replied. “Besides, I just got you back. I wasn’t ready to lose you again and there’s no way your father would let you anywhere near a murderer.” Vegeta wasn’t expecting to receive a slap to the face. He moved his hand to his cheek and looked at Bulma in shock and hurt.

“You are not a murderer,” she said, making him visibly relax. “I never want to hear you say that again. And we can help you, Vegeta. You know we have money. It’s our fault you ended up with such a monster, so it’s our responsibility to get you out of this.”

Vegeta blinked most of his tears back and sighed. He thought that he would lose Bulma for sure if she ever found out, but here she was wanting to help him get through this. He could only hope Goku’s mother and her parent’s would be just as understanding as both her and Goku. Vegeta nodded to her, indicating that he was ready to admit everything and accept her help. He just couldn’t do it alone anymore.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters.

Vegeta was nervous about admitting his past to Fasha and Raditz, but thankfully Goku, Bulma, and Zarbon were with him. Zarbon filled in the blanks that Vegeta did not want to mention.

“Is that why you disappear every other week?” Raditz asked, confusing the others. Vegeta looked away. “You did realize I’m up that early, right?”

Vegeta sighed. “My last order was an ex-drug addict who stopped giving Frieza his money. He was the father of a classmate. I had always done what I could to get help. Frieza knew and beat me any time I called the fire department. He told me before I left not to help…I was afraid of him. So I didn’t call for help.”

“What happened?” Fasha asked softly.

“I went in myself,” Vegeta replied, his voice getting hoarse, “but I couldn’t save them all.”

“But you did save someone,” Zarbon reminded him. He turned to the others. “He was able to get the classmate out of the house, though he was severely injured.”

Bulma flashed Vegeta a sympathetic glance and took his hand. “He doesn’t blame me,” Vegeta said, “but he should.”

“You visit him,” Bulma stated and Vegeta answered with a nod. “You shouldn’t beat yourself up about this, Vegeta.”

He looked at Bulma with the face of someone who was depressed and had given up.

“I for one feel that you did nothing wrong, Vegeta,” Fasha told him, shocking the boy. “It’s clear to me that you weren’t given much of a choice and that you did everything to stop it.”

“Not everything,” Vegeta muttered. “I could have let the bastard kill me.”

Everyone was shocked when a slap was heard in the room. Vegeta was holding his cheek, looking in shock to Bulma. She had tears streaming down her face and looked angry.

“Don’t you ever say that again!” she screamed at him. “What good would that have done?”

“I wouldn’t have been able to set those fires,” Vegeta argued.

Zarbon shook his head. “If not you, then another young child who would be too terrified to do what you did. Vegeta, you were the only one that ever tried to help them. Don’t you see how much good that will do for you?”

Shaking his head, Vegeta walked over to the window, looking out to the quiet street. Bulma walked over to him and gently leaned against him.

“I think we should leave them alone for a moment,” Fasha whispered to the three other boys. They all nodded and went to help the woman in the kitchen.

Vegeta sighed and wrapped his arms around Bulma. He nuzzled his nose in her hair, relishing in the feel of being near her, with her. Likewise, Bulma took his hand and put it to her lips. The two were perfectly content just holding one another.

“I can’t see why you would want to be this close to me,” Vegeta admitted quietly.

Bulma smiled sadly and without looking at him she answered, “Because I care about you Vegeta, more than anything. I want you to be happy, because then I’ll be happy too. I don’t want you blaming yourself for anything, because it was my one action that set this all in motion.”

“We’ve been over this, Bulma,” Vegeta replied. “You were not at fault for me being sent back.”

Bulma turned and glared at him. “Just like you were not at fault for anything else that happened. We were both victims, like you said, because of our age and because other people had control over us. But Vegeta, Frieza’s gone. Would you still light a fire now that the threat is gone? Would you stop trying to make up for what happened?”

Vegeta shook his head. “No.” He meant it too. Even being back at the foster home or with Goku’s family, he could never let a candle burn. His birthday cakes could not have any lit candles. Vegeta wouldn’t even tell the other kids stories by the fireplace anymore. It just brought back the painful memories of his past. “No.”

Bulma smiled and kissed him gently on the lips. “And that is why I love you. You have a good heart, Vegeta.”

“Bulma…” Vegeta said softly. Before he could say anything else, Fasha came in and cleared her throat to get their attention.

“Bulma, your parents are on their way,” she told the girl.

“Do they know?” Vegeta asked.

“Some of it, and just so you know, they aren’t blaming you either so don’t even worry about that.”

Bulma put her hand on his shoulder and forced him to look at her. “You see? We’re all on your side.”

Vegeta took Bulma’s hand, still unsure about the situation. “Thank you,” he whispered, placing a gentle kiss on her hand.

“No problem,” Bulma said happily with a smile on her face. Vegeta couldn’t help but smile too.

“This is interesting,” another voice said in secret. He had overheard everything at the school and then followed them to Vegeta’s foster home. “You shouldn’t have threatened me, you idiot. Let’s see how well you blend in when your entire school knows everything you did.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Okay, so I’m a little mean. Yes, someone’s out to get Vegeta. Three guesses who. Frieza is not a good guess, seeing as he’s kind of dead. And none of the other innocents are out to get him either. Hmmmmmm…..


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters

Vegeta sighed as he walked up to the school. Fasha kept telling him to take everything one day at a time. Dr. Briefs had hired him a lawyer who was working very well with him, trying to get him out of any hard time. He was, after all, a child when it happened. _One day at a time,_ Vegeta reminded himself even though he felt somewhat detached from his life.

He made it to his locker but, the entire walk, he couldn’t help but feel like people were watching him with strange expressions of confusion and fear and that they were talking about him. _Strange…_

“Hey Vegeta,” Bulma greeted happily taking his hand and kissing his cheek. “How are you doing this morning?”

“Okay I guess,” Vegeta said with uncertainty. He looked behind Bulma and saw some other students whispering and pointing. When they noticed him looking, they shut up and walked away. “I think people are talking about me.”

“I think you’re just being paranoid,” Bulma told him gently.

Vegeta didn’t truly agree, but he forced himself to agree with her. “I’m sure that’s what it is,” he replied. “We should get to class.”

Bulma nodded and gently stroked his face. “I have a meeting with my guidance counselor during class. I’ll see you right here after. Just try not to think about anything. Everything is going to be fine.”

“How do you know that?” Vegeta asked her.

“Because I have faith in you, and the justice system,” Bulma admitted. “I truly believe they will go easy on you all things considered.”

“I hope so,” Vegeta responded. “I really hope so.”

* * *

Vegeta couldn’t focus in his class. His thoughts were elsewhere. He knew he should probably warn Broly that he’d be questioned soon. Maybe Zarbon was right and the fact that he saved him would help his case. No one would know until the trial, whenever that would be. He looked back up to focus on the teacher’s lecture and found all eyes on him as if he had a tail or something. Vegeta raised his eyebrows and everyone looked back to the teacher.

Now that he was thinking a little more clearly, Vegeta started taking notes like a responsible student. He wasn’t going to let Frieza and his past ruin his future. While he was writing, a note appeared on his desk. He hadn’t seen who threw it, but he didn’t see the harm in reading it. When he opened it, he knew instantly that he shouldn’t have.

_Murderer!_

Vegeta felt like someone had stabbed him in the chest, going into panic-attack mode. When he looked up again, everyone was staring at him. It was then that he knew what was going on. Somehow, he didn’t know how, they all knew. That was why everyone was talking about him, whispering behind his back and fleeing when he looked at them. He didn’t understand. Only his friends knew the truth and he knew none of them would have said anything.

“Vegeta, are you alright?” the teacher asked, noticing the boy struggling to get control of himself. Vegeta didn’t respond. He just left the note and his books and ran out of the classroom. He ignored the people’s whispers and the sound of his teacher’s protests. All he thought as he left the school was that he just needed to get away from it all. It was just too much.

* * *

Bulma hurried to the lockers. Now she knew Vegeta wasn’t paranoid. She had been confronted by some girls from her classes outside the guidance office about how she was able to tolerate being friends with a killer. Bulma asked them what they were talking about and they told her that the whole school was talking about how Vegeta was an arson and was responsible for the deaths of many families, which wasn’t entirely true since most of them were saved by his calls to the fire department.

When Vegeta didn’t show up at the lockers, she went to his previous class and found his stuff still at his desk, but he was nowhere around.

“Bulma.” She looked up to their teacher, who looked incredibly concerned. He handed her the note. “Do you have any idea what this is about?”

Bulma’s eyes widened at the word that was written on the seemingly harmless piece of paper and took it from the teacher, shaking her head as if she were willing the word to disappear. “Where did he go?” Bulma asked with worry. The teacher told her that he didn’t know and Vegeta just ran out of the class. Bulma quickly picked up Vegeta’s things and fled the classroom herself. The only thing she could do now was go and search for Vegeta.

* * *

Meanwhile, Vegeta was in the spot in the forest where he had met with Bulma in the dead of night once before. The only word going through his head was “murderer.” He was hearing the whispers from the school, but they weren’t the only voices he heard. He could hear Frieza’s voice calling him a “murderer.” Vegeta’s rational mind was telling him that it was impossible. There was no one around, just trees, and Frieza was dead. There was no possible way for him to be hearing these voices.

A half hour went by and the voices only grew louder. Vegeta was getting dizzy and frustrated. His breathing was ragged. He just wanted quiet. The only way he could think to make the voices stop was to smash his head against a tree, but his head never hit it. Vegeta turned to see Bulma clutched to him. Her eyes were closed tight with streams of tears flowing down her face.

“Stop, Vegeta,” she pleaded. “Don’t do this to yourself.”

Vegeta was only going to hit his head against the tree. Sometimes smacking his head against something was the only way he could get to sleep. Then he looked down to his arms and understood why she was so freaked out. He was bleeding, thought he didn’t understand how. Maybe through his distress he hurt himself without even realizing it. Finally the voices stopped and he started catching his breath and calming down. Instead of the tree, he settled for pressing his forehead against Bulma’s, relaxing against the only pure thing in his life.

“It will be okay, Vegeta,” Bulma whispered. “They can’t do anything to you. It can’t hurt you if you don’t let it.”

“I want this to be over,” Vegeta said. Bulma could hear the hurt and exhaustion in his voice. In all honesty, she just wanted to know who told the school about Vegeta’s past because, whoever it was, she wanted to kick their butt into next week.

“I know, Geta,” Bulma cooed while stroking his hair. “I know; and it will be, soon. The lawyer called daddy and said that they might bypass a trial, just because they don’t want to cause anymore…unnecessary stress.”

“Is that lawyer talk for crazy?” Vegeta asked. “Because I might already be there.” The voices ringing in his head proved that.

“Well, they want to do a psychological profile, but yeah, pretty much,” Bulma answered. “But I don’t think you’re crazy.”

“Trust me, with what runs through my head…I’m surprised that no one has committed me yet.”

Bulma was about to scold Vegeta for putting himself down, but she saw his smirk and realized that he was making a joke. “Well, if you want, you can be committed to my house. I’ll set you straight.”

Vegeta stared at her blankly for a minute before moving quickly towards her. Bulma didn’t even know what happened until she felt Vegeta’s lips on her. She relaxed into the kiss and let Vegeta lie her down against the ground and tree roots. This kiss was different than any they had shared before. It was desperate; it was thankful; it was full of love that normally Vegeta couldn’t freely express, and Bulma loved it. The two let the kiss continue until Bulma felt Vegeta’s blood from his cuts on her.

She reluctantly pushed him away to try to bandage him with her handkerchief that she had with her. She was now thankful that he mother had been teaching her proper etiquette, although using the cloth for a bandage probably wouldn’t count as proper. “We should clean you up so Fasha doesn’t freak when she sees you.”

“No, you should go back to the school?” Vegeta pointed out. “You’ll get in trouble for skipping.”

“This is more important,” Bulma stated leaving no room for debate. “Now come on. We’ll worry about everything else later. Right now, we get to my house, clean you up, and have some lunch. What do you say?”

“That sounds nice.”

The two teens got up. Vegeta took Bulma’s hand as they made their way over to her house. Unfortunately, someone would be waiting there to ruin their moment’s peace.

* * *

“Well, look who it is,” a smug Yamcha greeted, leaning against the stair’s banister of Bulma’s home.

“Yamcha, get the hell off my family’s property,” Bulma snapped. “You’re lucky my father didn’t call the cops on you for bruising me.”

“I really don’t have to worry about that,” Yamcha replied coolly. “I mean, he’s letting you run around with a _murderer_ now so why would he report me for self-defense?”

“You,” Vegeta growled. “How dare you say anything when you have no idea?”

“Oh, I heard all about it at the school and then at your home,” Yamcha said proudly.

“Freaking stalker,” Bulma muttered. Then Bulma realized something. “You’re the one who started the rumor at our school, aren’t you?”

Yamcha smirked. “Call it payback for that jerk threatening me after our last encounter.”

“You really think you’re smart,” Vegeta stated. “You really have no idea who you’re messing with.”

“Oo, what are you going to do? Set me on fire or something? Then you’d go to jail for sure.”

“Yamcha, I’m not going to ask you again,” Bulma said with authority. “If you are not gone in three seconds, I will call the cops and this time, daddy won’t be saving your ass. I’ll report you for harassment and stalking.”

“Whatever,” Yamcha responded before taking his leave. “Just one thing, Bulma. I’d be watching out for yourself. No telling what can happen with a criminal for a boyfriend.”

Bulma let Yamcha walk away, pulling Vegeta inside the house quickly. She looked over to him with apologetic eyes. “Vegeta, I am so sorry,” she said quietly.

Vegeta looked away from her and shook his head. “It’s not your fault. It doesn’t matter, anyway. I’ll just have to work on not letting it bother me. But how are you going to feel with everyone thinking you’re dating a…” He couldn’t bring himself to say the word in fear that the voices would start up again.

“I don’t care what others think,” Bulma told him. “I know the real story; they don’t. I know who you really are and that’s all I care about. Now let’s get you cleaned up.” Vegeta didn’t have the energy to disagree.

* * *

After taking care of Vegeta’s wounds, Bulma made lunch while Vegeta took a nap. She could tell the stress was getting to him. Waiting for his sentence, whether it be community service or something more serious, was agonizing. In Bulma’s mind, Vegeta had been punished enough. He suffered from nightmares, self-loathing, and beatings from the creep who had adopted him. Why punish him more after he did so much good and had been forgiven by everyone around him?

Bulma set lunch on the table and went to go wake Vegeta up. He was having another nightmare, grasping for dear life onto the couch. Bulma sat down next to him and wiped the sweat from his brow. He started to visibly relax, but then woke up with a start.

“Bulma, what are you still doing here?” he asked in a panic. “We need to get out and call 9-1-1.”

“Vegeta, it was a dream,” Bulma explained. “We’re safe, okay?”

“But the fire…” he whispered.

“There is no fire,” Bulma told him. “Everything is fine. Lunch is ready. We don’t have to call anyone.”

Vegeta started looking around the room and saw that she was right. _But it felt so real…_ he pondered. In the nightmare, he was walking home and saw Bulma’s house on fire. He was able to get in and get to her in time, but then the flames got worse and they were about to be separated from each other and trapped before she woke him up. He was very thankful that it was just a dream and pulled Bulma into a hug. They stayed like that for a while before Bulma finally convinced him he needed to eat. Later, Bulma’s parents returned home and told them that the lawyer said a decision would be made within the next few weeks. Needless to say, this was going to be a long few weeks.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters

_Vegeta looked around the court room. He was incredibly nervous about what was about to take place._

_“All rise!” And then the bailiff introduced the judge. The judge and jury were now the ones who would decide his fate. What scared him was that when he looked over to the jury, he saw that it was made up of his classmates. But that couldn’t happen, right?_

_“Vegeta,” the judge started, “how do you plea?”_

_His lawyer told him to answer guilty. If he didn’t then he’d be perjuring himself. He did set the fires, but there were extenuating circumstances that could be argued. Wait, wasn’t his lawyer trying to bypass the trial all together. Why was he here now?_

_“Your plea?” the judge pressed._

_“G-guilty,” Vegeta said in a forced voice. He almost didn’t recognize his own voice._

_“Then it’s time for the sentencing.”_

_Vegeta panicked. “Wait, what? What about witnesses?”_

_“Oh right,” the judge said with boredom. “I call the only remaining witness to the crime, Broly, to the stand.”_

_Vegeta relaxed because he knew that Broly had forgiven him and would tell the court that he saved them. It stunned him when he looked angry and vengeful. The boy flashed a glare at Vegeta, making him cringed in his seat._

_The DA got up and asked Broly, “What happened the night of …?” Vegeta didn’t even hear the date being mentioned._

_Broly showed his notepad and it said, “ **He murdered my family**.”_

_“That’s all I needed to read,” the judge muttered. “Jury, how do you rule?”_

_And with that, all of his classmates started chanting the word “murderer” over and over again._

_“No, I…I’m not a…” but Vegeta couldn’t even speak as the officer hauled him away for his punishment._

_Somehow, they were now outside of Capsule Corp. Vegeta couldn’t remember why Bulma wasn’t at his trial._

_“You shouldn’t have gone in to help,” the officer said. Vegeta froze when he heard the voice and looked up to see Frieza._

_“You…you’re supposed to be dead,” Vegeta told him in fear._

_“I’m here now, Vegeta. I’m always there with you.”_

_He kicked Vegeta in the stomach and forced him down to the ground. He grabbed his head and forced him to look at the place that used to be his home. Out of nowhere, it burst into flames. Vegeta could hear Bulma screaming for him and he attempted to get away from his captor and save her, but Frieza would not have it._

_“This is what you deserve,” Frieza whispered into Vegeta’s ear as Vegeta screamed…_

“No!” he yelled, jolting out of bed. He was gasping for air as he was holding his breath for the majority of the dream. He plopped his head back down on his pillow in frustration. He had been having nightmares every night since Zarbon came to warn him.

Vegeta tried to move his arms to use as a pillow, but he realized that he couldn’t move his left arm. He looked down and saw Bulma sound asleep and wrapped in his arm. She had a smile on her face which made Vegeta feel at peace. He barely remembered that the two of them had been working on a project and had fallen asleep in his room. He was very happy that she was here with him and not stuck in a fire that was his punishment for his crimes.

Her short breaths started to lull him back to sleep, hopefully with no nightmares. He hoped a decision would be reached soon. He didn’t know how much more of this he could take.

* * *

Vegeta decided it would be best to talk to Broly before he was to be questioned about that night. This trip to visit him would certainly be different, though. Why? Bulma wanted to go with him.

They got to the home where Broly lived with many other children with medical problems, a type of orphanage that was pretty much like a nursing home. The lobbyist smiled at Vegeta when he entered. Her smile widened when she saw that the young man had brought a guest with him this time.

“Hello, Vegeta,” she greeted. “It’s nice to see you here with a friend.”

Bulma smiled at the lobbyist and Vegeta felt his twisting nerves start to settle. He hadn’t really wanted to bring Bulma, but she would not let him leave until he agreed for her to join him.

“What’s your name?” the lobbyist asked Bulma.

“Bulma, Bulma Briefs,” she answered.

The lobbyist wrote her name down along with Vegeta’s on a sign-in sheet and handed them visitors passes. Vegeta took them and handed one to Bulma before entering into the den. Bulma looked around at all the children and young teens who were either watching movies, playing games, or running around. She caught herself wondering which one was Broly. She could tell instantly as a boy in a wheelchair rolled up to them with a notepad on his lap. She didn’t know why he had a notepad, but she figured she’d find out.

Broly didn’t say anything, but the three of them distanced themselves from the others in the room. He smiled at Bulma, then looked back to Vegeta, and wrote something down on his notepad.

**“I’m surprised to see you here with a friend. You usually come alone.”**

Vegeta sighed. “She wouldn’t let me out of the house until I agreed to let her come with me,” Vegeta told him.

Bulma’s eyes widened when she realized why he had the notepad. Broly couldn’t talk. She looked over to Vegeta who had the look of guilt plastered on his face. The truth finally hit her. Broly was here because he lost his parents in the fire, as well as the ability to walk and talk. Now Bulma could understand why Vegeta felt so guilty. She wondered if he’d ever be able to forgive himself.

 **“What brings you two here today?”** Broly asked.

Vegeta couldn’t even look at him when he said this. “Frieza got himself killed.” Broly tensed at hearing Frieza’s name. “He made sure that every crime he had me and the other children commit would be reported to the police. I’m the last one that has to go through a trial…hopefully the lawyer can pass it by. But I wanted you to know that they may come to question you at some point of my involvement and what I did to you.”

Broly smiled at Vegeta and shook his head before writing something else. **“What you did to me? Vegeta, you rescued me. I don’t care if you set the fire. If not you, then someone else. You didn’t have to come back and help. You tried to save all of us. And that’s what I’ll tell them if they ever come here.”**

“I don’t understand why you just can’t hate me,” Vegeta replied with a heavy sadness. He felt Bulma’s hand rubbing his shoulder.

“I think you hate yourself more than you should, Vegeta,” she told him. “You need to let it go. You’re a good person and very loved. I’m sure that if there is a trial, the court will be able to see that.”

Broly smiled at Bulma. **“Listen to her; she’s smart.”**

“Thanks, Broly,” Bulma said in response to his compliment.

**“No problem :D”**

Vegeta couldn’t help but smile a little and let out a small chuckle. He was pretty happy that Bulma got along with Broly. It made him think…Broly really didn’t get out much except to doctor appointments. Maybe when this whole mess was over, he could convince the lobbyist to let Broly hang out with him and his friends. It would be better than staying there twenty-four/seven.

* * *

Vegeta and Bulma stayed for a few hours and talked with Broly. He told (wrote) Bulma many stories about when he and Vegeta were in school together. Bulma laughed at all of the jokes he made, but inside was feeling terrible that she, Goku, and Broly seemed to be the only friends Vegeta ever had between her family and the other thirteen families.

When they left, Vegeta could tell that Bulma was thinking very hard about something. “What’s wrong?” he asked her in attempts to break the awkward silence.

She flashed him a sad smile. “It’s nothing, Vegeta. I was just thinking about the fact that despite all of the families you went to, the only people you seem to have as friends are me, Goku, and Broly. I just…I wish I could have seen you all those years. Maybe then you wouldn’t feel so alone in this.”

Before Bulma knew it, she was gently pushed up against a building with Vegeta staring into her eyes intensely with a burning passion. She registered the feeling of his lips on hers as he kissed her with a desperation that felt different than all the other times he had kissed her. She didn’t even care if anyone were to walk by and see them as she wove her fingers in his hair and gently massaged his scalp.

Vegeta gasped into her mouth as he felt the comforting sensation her hands were causing. He didn’t know how to respond except to continue kissing her. He was so thankful for her. She had been the only person to comfort him in this manner for his entire life. His real mother rarely ever held him when he was terrified of his father’s drunken outbursts. She was always high. And the other women in other families, well, he didn’t let them get close to him. He really did like Fasha, but he never let her see his vulnerable side. The same with Bulma’s mother. Bulma was the only person in his life that he allowed to see him at his most vulnerable point.

Vegeta reluctantly broke away from her as he panted heavily. Bulma’s hands, still in his hair, moved down to cup his face. The two of them stared at one another for a moment before some random person cleared their throat. The two teens blushed and pushed themselves off of the wall of the building. They continued their stride to the bus stop, hand in hand, ignoring the confused stares of the passerby that interrupted them.

* * *

Vegeta brought Bulma back to her home and she invited him in. He declined her offer, though, because he knew he wouldn’t go home if he entered with her. He really hated being separated from her, but he had to be ready for what tomorrow would bring. “I have an appointment with a psychiatrist tomorrow,” Vegeta reminded her. “Fasha wanted to go with me.”

Bulma pouted a bit, nearly making Vegeta smirk, but he remained serious. “You can call her and have her pick you up before the appointment. I kind of wanted to go with you too.”

Vegeta felt something stir inside of him. Bulma really didn’t want him going through any of this alone. Then he was hit by another idea. “I know last night was an accident, but how about you stay with me again tonight at my house? You can get an outfit and then we’ll all just go in the morning.”

Bulma’s face lit up when Vegeta accepted her request to go with him. “Okay, I’ll just leave a note for my parents.”

The two of them went inside and Bulma left Vegeta in the living room to get herself packed for the night. While she was upstairs, Vegeta walked into the kitchen. He gasped when he realized something he hadn’t when he was living there.

Bulma came down with the note and put it on the kitchen table. She saw Vegeta blankly staring at the oven in fear. She went over to touch his shoulder and he jumped. When he realized it was her, he yelled at her, his voice full of fear. “Why do you have a gas stove? Do you know how dangerous those things are? What if you accidentally bump it and it causes a fire if you’re not paying attention?”

“Vegeta, calm down,” Bulma told him. “If you must know, my father’s been looking into an electric oven for a while. He’s actually pretty close to ordering one. It wasn’t something we thought about when we moved here. He’s been looking into it for a few months, actually, because of a program we watched on T.V. Plus, electric ovens cook food quicker. This thing will be out of here in a few weeks, I’m sure.”

Vegeta let out a breath of relief and then said, “Promise me you won’t use it when you’re alone.”

Bulma frowned. She knew that she would need to cook for herself, but to appease Vegeta, she would agree for now. “I promise, Vegeta. If you want, you can go over and check it and we can go.”

Vegeta nodded and went over to the oven to make sure that the stove was off. When he was satisfied, he turned and nodded to Bulma, and the two of them took their leave.

* * *

Vegeta and Bulma worked some more on their project and then got ready for bed. Vegeta felt bad that he was making her miss school the next day. He hadn’t really been going since everyone found out, but Bulma would bring his work to him. He had honestly wished that she had been in class that morning and not a meeting. Then maybe he wouldn’t have run out and let everyone see how affected he was by that word.

Vegeta tensed as he remembered his dream from the night before. All of that chanting, it was driving him nuts. He could hear the chanting start again, but then heard silence when Bulma slid onto his bed next to him. She snuggled against him and Vegeta took one of his hands out from under his head to wrap around her. He stroked her bare shoulder as he stared up at the ceiling without blinking. She was already drifting off to sleep, so she didn’t know the anxiety Vegeta was feeling. Eventually she was out and Vegeta was still awake, now playing with her hair.

_“This is what you deserve,” Frieza whispered into Vegeta’s ear._

Vegeta clenched his eyes shut and shook his head. Frieza was dead and buried, and so was his past. Everyone seemed to believe that he deserved better than what he thought, even one of the victims. So why, when everyone else believe he’d be exonerated or given community service, did he keep believing that he was going to lose Bulma and serve prison time?

Vegeta sighed and turned over so that he could put both arms around Bulma. Though asleep, Bulma seemed to cuddle deeper into Vegeta’s grasp. Vegeta buried his face in her hair and took in a deep breath to calm himself. The troubled young innocent attempted to get at least a few hours of sleep so that he would be ready for his session.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Okay, so I’m predicting 4 or 5 more chapters. Next is Vegeta’s psychological profiling session. The chapter after that will be a meeting with his lawyer. Then the last few…well, it will be surprising to say the least.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters.

“So why are you here?” the therapist asked Vegeta after they sat down in her office.

Vegeta sighed and looked away. That was the worst question to ask. How was he supposed to respond? ‘I’m here because I burned houses for my foster father, killed two families, and left a kid, my friend, crippled and mute.’ Yeah, he really wanted to say all that.

“I made a mistake,” he settled on. It was true and they both knew it.

“Can you elaborate?” she pressed.

Vegeta looked out the window. That morning, he had woken up from another nightmare; well, more like Bulma woke him up. He had broken out into a cold sweat and was thrashing about a little bit. Bulma managed to wake him up and calm him down. Fasha and the boys came into the room just in time to see Vegeta crying on Bulma’s shoulder. It broke their hearts since they had never seen him so torn up before. They were thankful that Bulma had been there for him. Even Vegeta knew he needed her and this therapy session. He sighed again knowing that he had to let down his guard with the woman sitting across from him.

“I was adopted by a man,” Vegeta said in slight anger. “Well, he was more of a monster than a man. He ran a drug ring and had a lot of money to adopt. There were so many children there that he had adopted. At first, things were fine, but then when we would do something wrong, he would get aggressive. Everyone was afraid to report him, afraid of what he might do to us.” Vegeta paused as the woman wrote some things down and then looked back at him signaling him to continue.

“The older kids tried to protect us,” Vegeta told her. “They would take the beatings for us and eventually Frieza ordered us to take care of the people who betrayed him, those who were behind on payments or who quit all together. Depending on who we were close to in the house, he would threaten their lives. I…I managed to befriend my adopted brother, Zarbon, and we were always used against each other. I would go…I would set the fires, but I would always call 9-1-1 before leaving. Then the last time…”

Vegeta couldn’t continue. It was getting too hard for him to talk about this. The therapist eyed him expectantly, but when he said nothing she said, “You were placed in a very difficult position, Vegeta. I know that you are being forced here by the courts for this evaluation, but there is a part of you that wants to be here, isn’t there?”

Vegeta nodded. He knew he needed this as the nightmares and voices came daily. “I just want it all to stop,” Vegeta responded.

The therapist flashed him a sympathetic smile. “Maybe you just need to lay it all on the table. Remember, anything you tell me will be kept confidential. The evaluation won’t include any of these details. It will just be my medical opinion on whether or not you should be tried or serve. If you feel like you need to stop with this, we still have an hour and can talk about anything else. I already have enough information to go on. We can just schedule another appointment.”

Vegeta felt relieved that he didn’t have to relive it all now. He knew there would be questions she had to ask him, but he at least didn’t have to relive what happened that night now. “Okay.”

The therapist smiled at him. “So, your lawyer said that you are still in contact with a boy who was in one of the fires. Can you tell me about that?”

Vegeta hesitated but nodded and looked away again. “He was a friend from school. His dad had been on drugs, but quit so that he could be a better father for his son. I…I respected him for that. He did the one thing my parents would not, and I felt a deep respect for the man. Then I found out that it was Frieza he was getting his supply from and I panicked. When Frieza was giving out the assignments, he told me I was next. He would send only a few of us out, so he could use the others as leverage. He told me, before I left, not to call for help. I listened that time.

“I never wanted to do it,” Vegeta growled as he punched the wall next to him. “I wanted to die when I saw my friend and his family having a bonding moment. His dad had finally gotten clean…it was his second chance and I ruined it…” The therapist handed Vegeta her tissue box as she saw the tears starting to form in his eyes. He took it, but didn’t use anything yet.

“I went back in after I set the fire,” Vegeta whispered. The therapist nearly fell out of her seat when he admitted this. “I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t try. I tried to find them all, but they were all apart from each other…an effect of the blast. Broly’s parents were already gone. I found him under a wooden pillar. He could barely move, but I managed to get him out. The doctors said he couldn’t walk anymore, and his vocal cords were damaged by the smoke, so he couldn’t speak anymore either. He’s such a good person, too. He was the best athlete at the school. I…I ruined his life.”

The therapist wrote some more things down. She didn’t expect him to open up so quickly. The entire time, she could tell that he felt both ashamed and guilty. He would barely look at her. That was always a sign. The teenager looked like he had lost all hope. He was remorseful; that much was obvious. He didn’t need to serve prison time. He was already living in his own hell.

“Why do you continue to visit him?” the woman asked. “It must make things hard on you.”

“He’s my friend,” Vegeta replied. “I took everything from him. I couldn’t just abandon him, so I visit him as frequently as I can. He tells me that I saved his life…that it wasn’t my fault…but he’s just a good guy like that. I deserve every bit of punishment…I just don’t want to lose anyone else.”

“Why would you think that you are going to lose someone else?”

“Because of the nightmares,” Vegeta admitted. “Every time I close my eyes, I dream that I’m going to lose a friend to the flames. I hear voices, sometimes, calling me a…’murderer.’ Frieza appears in the dreams telling me I deserve to lose someone I care about. I…I can’t lose her. She’s the only untainted thing in my life. I can’t…” Vegeta let his voice trail off. The therapist looked at him thoughtfully.

“Is it the girl that came with you and your guardian today?” Vegeta nodded again. “She seems very nice.”

“She is,” Vegeta said in a calmer voice. He was able to look the therapist in the eye as he spoke about her. “She’s brilliant and kind…she even accepts what I did. She…she told me she loved me.”

“Do you love her?” Vegeta was asked.

He sucked in some air, growing nervous. He looked away again, as if he felt guilty for loving her. “I’m afraid to say it, because if I do, she’ll be taken away from me or become tainted.”

The therapist wrote a few more notes down and then put a signature on a paper form she had. She closed her notepad and put it aside. “Do you like pinball?” she asked.

Vegeta was taken aback by the bizarre question. “Um…yes?”

She smiled at him. “Good.” She got up and walked over to the closet in her office. She had a giant pinball machine in there. “Why don’t we play a round and I’ll give you some advice on how to handle your fears.”

Vegeta was unsure, but he nodded in agreement. This was a lot different than what he had expected.

* * *

Bulma was nervous and pacing. Fasha tried to get her to calm down, but she was just worried. Bulma didn’t think it was bad that he was talking about his problems, and she did have faith that everyone would see him for the kind-hearted and innocent soul he was. She just needed to see him happy and calm. If he had another nightmare like the one the night before, she didn’t know what she would do. Seeing him in pain broke her. She missed his smile, a lot.

Then the door opened and Vegeta came out with a smirk on his face. He nodded to the therapist who just handed him an appointment card and told him to enjoy the rest of the day. He walked over to Bulma and Fasha and said, “I’m ready to go.”

Both women noticed that his voice sounded a lot softer and lighter. Bulma smiled and gave him a hug. “Good,” she said sweetly. “We can finish our project and then go out and do something. What do you say?” Vegeta just responded with a smirk and a nod.

In the car on the way back to Fasha’s, Bulma asked, “So what made you feel better?”

“Lots of things,” Vegeta replied. “She talked a lot about letting go, and then rewarding myself for taking steps towards the positives. And then I beat her high score at pinball.”

Bulma’s mouth dropped open when he said that last part, but when his smirk became more of a smile, she started laughing. She leaned against Vegeta to brace herself and his smile just widened before he joined her. Fasha looked at the two through the rearview mirror and smiled. It was the first time in years that she had seen Vegeta laugh like that.

* * *

Bulma and Vegeta finished their presentation for their project just in time for Fasha to be done with lunch. The two of them still had the rest of the day to do something, but neither was suggesting anything. They went back up to his room and lied down on his bed, just holding each other.

“Okay, I like this,” Vegeta stated abruptly as he smirked at Bulma. Bulma didn’t know what happened in the therapist’s office, but Vegeta was already starting to act like his old self, if only just a little bit.

“Me too,” Bulma replied as she snuggled closer to Vegeta.

Vegeta took his hand and tilted her chin up so that she was looking at him, his thumb lightly massaging her cheek. “I am so grateful that you didn’t leave me when you found out,” Vegeta told her. “I wouldn’t be able to do this without you.”

Bulma smiled and rested her hand atop of his. “Of course I wouldn’t have left you,” Bulma told him. “You know how I feel about you.”

Vegeta nodded to her and tilted her head back down so he could kiss her forehead. He let his lips linger there for a bit before resting his head on top of hers. “You mean the world to me,” he whispered to her. Bulma nodded, but she didn’t respond. Nothing more had to be said.

Fasha found the two of them asleep in each other’s arms when Bulma’s father called. She knew a little bit of the story of how Vegeta ended up being placed back in the system, and even though she didn’t think it mattered anymore, she still told him that Bulma was in the bathroom. She would have Bulma call him back later, but for now, she just let the two teens sleep. Lord knew they needed it.

Just then, the phone rang and she quietly answered it and shut the door to her adopted son’s room. “Hello?” she responded to the person.

“ _Yes, Mrs. Son, this is Mr. Keats, Vegeta’s lawyer_ ,” the man responded. “ _We’re ready to give him a ruling. Can you stop in tomorrow?”_

“Yes,” Fasha replied, “we can.”


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do NOT own DBZ or the characters.

Vegeta was nervous. Actually, that was an understatement. Fasha had told him that he would be given the verdict the next day. Bulma, unfortunately, had to return home the night before because her father’s associates were coming for dinner. Sometimes Vegeta forgot she was the heiress to a well-known company. To him, she was just Bulma, and he knew she felt the same way about him.

He was trying to focus hard on his therapist’s words, but he couldn’t shake the overwhelming feeling of dread hanging over him. He had texted Bulma that morning, but she had been in class and couldn’t talk long before the teacher confiscated her phone. She texted him when the day was over and she got her phone back. Her father wanted her home before he and her mother were leaving town. Vegeta worried about her being home alone.

The lawyer came out and Vegeta shot out of his chair. Mr. Keats smiled at Vegeta and motioned for him and Fasha to enter his office. “Welcome, you two. I believe we should get started.” He looked towards Vegeta who wasn’t meeting his eyes. Fasha noticed his anxiety and put her hand over his, rubbing it comfortingly.

“It’s going to be okay, Vegeta,” she said confidently.

Mr. Keats grinned. “She’s right you know. The good news is there will be no trial; however, that is only if Vegeta agrees to continue with therapy and to do three-hundred hours of community service.”

Vegeta’s mouth dropped open. If that was all, he was taking it. “Sold,” he said breathlessly.

“Alright,” Mr. Keats replied. He took out a packet of papers. “Then I’m just going to need you and your guardian to sign a few places. We will need records from wherever you volunteer and a weekly report from your therapist.”

Vegeta nodded and started signing the paperwork. He looked to the lawyer Mr. Briefs had hired questioningly. The lawyer stared back at him and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“I…I’m not in trouble?” Vegeta asked.

The lawyer was taken aback by the innocence in his voice and the desperation of his question. “Um, well, I wouldn’t say that. It’s clear to the court that all of the children involved were just as much victims as the actual victims. But crimes were still committed, which is why the amount of hours is so high. It will be kept on your records that you were convicted of a crime until you complete all of your hours.”

“That’s fair,” Vegeta agreed. “I don’t mind giving back. Really.”

“That’s good to hear,” Mr. Keats stated. “Anyway, it will take about a week or two for the paperwork to be processed. Still go to the therapist and have her contact me.”

“We will,” Fasha said standing up. She shook the lawyer’s hand. “Thank you.”

The lawyer nodded to them and shook Vegeta’s hand. “I’m glad everything worked out for you. You’re a good kid.”

Vegeta blushed slightly, not liking the praise. Fasha just laughed and patted his shoulders. “Come on, son,” she said. “Let’s get you home.”

Vegeta’s eye widened and he looked to Fasha in shock. She just smiled as he nodded and let her lead him out of the lawyer’s office. He took out his phone once they were in the car and tried to call Bulma. He had a really bad feeling when she didn’t answer the phone.

* * *

Bulma went through the motions all day during school. She really wanted Vegeta to get off easy. He had suffered so much and she knew that a trial or jail time wouldn’t help him at all. It would hurt him more because he would think he deserved to be there and give up hope on the wonderful and strong person he was.

When she got home, she realized that her parents had already left town. She knew she promised Vegeta she wouldn’t use the gas stove, but she had to make herself some lunch. She was very careful, though, and didn’t leave her cooking grilled cheese unattended.

She took out her biology book and started reviewing for the upcoming exam when there was a knock on the kitchen door. “Who could that be?” Bulma wondered out loud to herself. She went to answer the door and frowned. It was Yamcha. “What the hell do you want?” she snapped.

Yamcha was taken aback by the pure hatred lacing her usually sweet and melodic voice. “I wanted to know if you wanted to catch a movie,” he tried.

“Not with you,” Bulma growled before attempting to slam the door in his face. He caught the door and then forced himself inside.

“Come on, Bulma,” he said with slight anger. “Don’t tell me you’re still seeing that criminal.”

“He’s not a criminal!” Bulma shouted. “You don’t know anything, so don’t you even dare judge Vegeta. How dare you spread that rumor around our school? For what you did to someone I care about, I will never forgive you. Get the hell out of my house, Yamcha. I meant it. I will call the cops. My father did clear everything up with them about last time.”

Yamucha narrowed his eyes at Bulma. “Whatever,” he growled before smacking her phone off the table and breaking it. He stormed out of the kitchen and slammed the door shut making Bulma cringe.

She picked up her broken phone and rolled her eyes. “Someone has attitude problems,” she grumbled.

She left the kitchen and decided to use the house phone to call her parents and tell them what happened to her phone. The phone line was disconnected, though, and a message on the other end told Bulma that they were doing phone wire repairs on her street. She sighed and decided she would go see Vegeta later and call her parents from there. Irritated by the lack of a phone and pissed off with her interaction with Yamcha, she decided to go pack up her books and run upstairs to take a shower and get ready to go see Vegeta. However, her lunch cooking in the kitchen was all but forgotten.

* * *

Vegeta still wasn’t feeling any better and was pacing all around the house. Bulma would have called him by now. It had been an hour since he tried to call her and he knew she was anxiously awaiting the verdict. She wouldn’t go anywhere without her phone on a good day. No, something was wrong, and Vegeta could feel it.

“Chill out, man,” Raditz said when he came home from his classes. He put his keys down on the table as well as some mail. “For someone who just has community service to worry about, you are overly jumpy.”

“Raditz, will you drive me to Bulma’s?” Vegeta asked fearfully. “I’m worried.”

Raditz frowned at Vegeta. He knew that he had been afraid about losing her. With his room being right next to his, he had to deal with hearing Vegeta’s pleas and whimpers at night. “Yeah, of course,” Raditz agreed grabbing his keys back off the kitchen table. “Let’s go.”

* * *

Bulma loved being in the shower, but she knew she needed to hurry over to Vegeta’s. She really wanted to know what the lawyer had said. Quickly she got dressed and packed a small overnight bag, as well as gathering her school books. Out of nowhere, the smoke alarm started going off. “What the hell?” Bulma asked to herself. It was then her stomach growled and she remembered that she hadn’t eaten the lunch she had been cooking. _Oh shit,_ she thought in alarm.

She hurried downstairs and saw a small pan fire in the kitchen. She breathed out in slight relief. She thought it would be much worse than that; however, she knew she needed to get out of the house before it got worse. There was nothing she could do to get in contact with the fire department until after she left anyway since the phone lines were down.

Bulma went to exit the house calmly from the front, but the door would not open. She pushed and pulled as hard as she could, but it wouldn’t budge. Then she remembered something about the house when her father installed a security system…it had a lockdown feature.

Bulma gasped in both shock and fear before looking back to the fire that was now starting to spread. Her eyes widened. She knew she was in a lot of trouble now.

* * *

Vegeta was tense and it was worrying Raditz. The older teen was driving as fast as he could to Bulma’s house. He would search the roads, and if he didn’t see any oncoming cars or cops, he ran the stop signs to try to ease the anxiety Vegeta was feeling. When they got to Bulma’s house, Raditz parked the car across the street. “Alright, we’re here,” Raditz said not looking away from Vegeta.

The young teen shot out of the car and gasped at what he saw. It was just like his dreams, although not as bad, just in the downstairs. But Bulma’s house was still on fire, and he knew that she was most likely still inside.

“Bulma!”


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters.

Vegeta was frozen in fear trying to catch his breath. He began to run over to the house. He wouldn’t let anything to happen to Bulma even if it killed him.

“Vegeta, what are you doing?” Raditz shouted to him.

Vegeta turned his head back but kept running. “Call 9-1-1!” he shouted.

He stopped at the front door and saw a bucket of rain water that he dumped on himself. He saw Raditz on his cell phone and watched him hang up the phone. Then Raditz started running over to Vegeta who was trying to open the front door.

“Vegeta, stop!” Raditz called running over to him. “Just wait for the firefighters!”

Vegeta shook his head and threw the bucket at Raditz. Raditz tripped over it and watched in fear as Vegeta ran over to the window, covered his head with his arms, and charged at it.

Vegeta was in the living room seconds later, but it didn’t look like the fire had reached there yet. He saw Bulma buried within herself in the corner and relaxed a little bit. She was fine, just frightened. He couldn’t blame her for that.

Bulma heard sirens and her head shot up. She saw Vegeta kneeling down in front of her and clutched onto him. She broke down into tears as Vegeta comfortingly rubbed her back. All he was thinking was, _Thank God,_ over and over again. He glanced over to the hallway at the flames that were starting to make their way into the living room now that air was getting in. “We have to get out of here now,” he told her calmly.

“H-how?” Bulma asked drying her tears. “The house is on lockdown.”

“I broke through the window,” Vegeta explained. Bulma gasped and took a good look at him. He had a few small cuts on his arms and face.

“Oh Vegeta,” she cooed wiping some of the blood off his cheek.

Vegeta shook his head. “No time. Worry about getting out of here before worrying about anything else.”

“Right,” Bulma agreed.

* * *

Vegeta got outside and then helped Bulma get out through the broken window without her getting cut. Raditz ran over to them as the firefighters started containing the flames. Raditz wanted so badly to punch Vegeta for scaring him but he couldn’t bring himself to. Instead, he hugged both Vegeta and Bulma.

“Don’t you ever scare me like that again, you idiot,” Raditz said to Vegeta.

“Is everyone okay over here?” the chief firefighter asked.

“Y-yeah,” Bulma replied. She was still a little shaken by the fire.

“Can you tell me what happened?” he asked her.

Bulma flashed Vegeta an apologetic look. “I should have listened to you. I was using the stove.”

Vegeta just hugged her tighter and shook his head. “I don’t care. You’re safe. That’s all I care about.”

“Thanks to you,” the firefighter said. “Have you ever thought about becoming a volunteer fireman?”

“No,” Vegeta responded nervously. “I really hadn’t thought about it.”

The firefighter looked to Bulma waiting for her to continue. She sighed and said, “I was cooking lunch and then a neighbor came by and irritated me before breaking my cell phone. I got so frustrated that I forgot I was cooking and left the room. I…I was upstairs getting ready to leave and then I heard the smoke detector go off and remembered. It was just in the pan at first, and then I tried to leave, but the house was on lockdown and I couldn’t…I couldn’t get out.”

The firefighters looked over to the broken window and then back to Vegeta. “You took a big risk, kid.”

“It was riskier to leave her in there until help showed up,” Vegeta replied clutching Bulma closer to him.

The firefighter nodded. “Well, the good news is that you’re both safe and that the damage will probably only be in the downstairs area. Once the flames are out and we investigate the stability of the floors, you’ll probably be able to go back inside and gather some belongings. Do you have a place to stay?”

“Y-yeah,” Bulma answered, still holding onto Vegeta. “I just need to c-call my parents. I n-need to tell them.”

The firefighter nodded. “I understand.”

Vegeta took out his phone and handed it to Bulma who took it from him. While she made her phone call, Raditz took the firefighter to the side. He noticed that he wasn’t really buying Bulma’s full story. “Look, I don’t know what you’re thinking but I don’t like the way you are looking at them,” Raditz growled.

“Don’t worry; it’s not them I have a problem with,” the firefighter said. “The girl said that the house was on lockdown, meaning something had to have happened from the outside that caused the building to lock down. Now she didn’t say anything about a window being opened, but for someone staying home alone, I would expect the windows to be closed.”

“Yeah, and?” Raditz pressed.

“I think someone was trying to break into the kitchen. It looks like the window was open, which is why the fire spread. And because someone tried to get in through the outside, the house went on lockdown.”

“But the window was opened,” Raditz reminded him. “Wouldn’t they have gone in anyway?”

“Not if they saw the fire.”

Raditz paled. Who would have just left after seeing a pan fire without calling for help? “Did anyone else call in?”

“No, just you.”

Raditz shook his head. He looked back over to Vegeta and Bulma. The two of them were sitting against the back of one of the trucks, another firefighter bringing them water and cleaning out Vegeta’s cuts. Someone left the fire raging and, whether it was accidental or not, it was that person’s fault that it spread as far as it did. “I need to go talk to them,” Raditz told the chief.

He nodded. “Yes. It’s possible that whoever tried to break in was trying to do more than just have a word with the girl. Oh, and have the kid call the office. We could use a guy like him.”

“I will,” Raditz agreed. “Um, what should I do for them?”

“Just take them to the hospital to have them checked out, although I’m sure they’re fine. You don’t have to go to the emergency room or anything,” the firefighter instructed. “Can I have your number to call when we give the all clear? We’ll accompany the girl in the house to get her stuff.”

“Sure,” Raditz said taking out his phone. “Um, could I get your name?”

The firefighter smirked. “It’s Nappa,” he answered taking out his own phone. They exchanged numbers and Raditz went back to Vegeta and Bulma. When he saw them, they were both crying again from both fear and relief. It was so hard to see them like that, especially when he had even more bad news to give.

Just then, some kid Raditz didn’t recognize marched over to both Bulma and Vegeta and attempted to punch Vegeta in the face. Vegeta caught the punch and slammed the kid against the fire truck. “What are you doing here?” he snapped.

“Getting Bulma away from the likes of you,” the kid replied. “I bet you were the one who started the pan fire.”

“Yamcha, leave us alone,” Bulma nearly screamed. She still had tears in her eyes. “That fire started because I forgot about something I had on the stove when you came to bitch at me.”

“Hey!” Raditz snapped angrily at the kid. “How did you even know it was a pan fire to begin with?”

Vegeta looked from his adoptive brother to Yamcha who looked like a deer caught in the headlights. He nearly slammed him harder into the truck. “Answer him!” he shouted.

“I just assumed,” Yamucha yelled in desperation.

Bulma’s eyes widened in shock. “Yamcha, did you know about the fire?”

“What? No! I just saw the trucks!”

“Really?” Raditz said in frustration. “Vegeta, let go of him for a minute.” Vegeta growled but reluctantly complied. Next thing anyone knew Raditz was glaring down at Yamcha after he forced him to the ground. “The chief firefighter just told me that there was a break in, oh wait, a possible break in that put the house on lockdown. Whoever it was could have probably still gotten in if they wanted to, but whoever it was must have seen the start of the fire. But did they think to call it in? No! They just left the fire burning. But whoever it was definitely saw that it was a pan fire. Isn’t that right, you bastard?”

Vegeta looked over to the chief firefighter who was now heading towards them. “Hey, what’s going on over here?”

“I think we found the little culprit,” Raditz growled getting up off of Yamcha.

“You can’t prove anything,” Yamcha snarled rubbing his neck. “Besides, you just assaulted me. And so did that bastard,” he said pointing to Vegeta. “Sucks that you have a criminal record, huh? I’m sure the cops won’t be too happy to hear-“

“That you were going to let me die and then let Vegeta take the fall?” Bulma finished getting in front of Yamcha. She slapped him across the face. “You are a sick creep, Yamcha. Now I’ve stomached a lot of your crap, the stalking, you hitting me after I hit you, but this…” She let out a dry laugh. “This is a new low, even for you. And then to come up to us and accuse Vegeta of setting the fire. He _saved_ me, Yamcha. He risked his life to help me because you chose not to. You think you can get away with this? You’re a moron. You better pray they find no evidence, because if they do, I’ll be the first to testify.”

“There wouldn’t be any evidence, especially if there was a fire and they used water on the house,” Yamcha replied smugly.

“Actually,” Nappa started, “there’s plenty of evidence that can be taken from the house. The screen from the kitchen window was pulled off and left and the cops are already checking it for fingerprints. And of course there is the matter of the cell phone we found in the bushes.”

Yamcha tensed and started checking his pockets. He looked surprised when he realized he still had his cell phone on him. He looked from his phone over to Nappa in confusion. “And that was all the proof I needed.” He turned to both Raditz and Vegeta. “Keep him here. I’m going to go get the officer.”

Raditz nodded towards Nappa while Vegeta and Yamcha were stuck in the middle of a glaring contest. Bulma was now slightly behind Vegeta. “I hope it was worth it,” Vegeta growled, “knowing that you were willing to let an innocent girl die because of your sick vendetta. I will never let you hurt her again.”

Yamcha waved him off. “Whatever. At least I know we’ll be cell mates if nothing else.”

Vegeta couldn’t help but smirk. “Oh, you haven’t heard. There’s no trial or prison time, just community service.”

Bulma’s face lit up as she turned to face Vegeta. “Really?” He smiled and nodded at her. She squealed with joy and hugged him. “I knew things would work out.”

“How is that ‘working out?’ He’s a felon!” Yamcha snapped.

Vegeta shot him a glare. “Not by choice, but you definitely are.”

Before Yamcha could retort, the officer came over to him and started reading him his rights. Vegeta held Bulma close to him as the two watched him being dragged away. Letting out a sigh of relief, Bulma relaxed into Vegeta’s grasp as he started walking them to Raditz’s car. Raditz continued to talk to Nappa and the police officer about his knowledge of the situation.

“Everything is okay now,” Bulma told him. Vegeta simply nodded as buried his head against her neck.

“I was so worried I was going to lose you,” Vegeta whispered in her ear. “I was worried about you all day. And then I come here and see the house like that and I panicked.”

Bulma turned to face him and cupped his face in her hands. “If it weren’t for you I may not even be here right now. You saved me, Vegeta. And you were right…I shouldn’t ever use a gas stove…like ever.”

Vegeta couldn’t help but chuckle a little bit at the dry humor. He shook his head. “No making me laugh.”

“But I like it when you laugh,” Bulma admitted. “It means you’re happy, and I like seeing you happy.”

Vegeta pulled Bulma to him gently and kissed her. He pressed his forehead against hers and said, “You make me happy, and I am happy my dream did not come true.”

“And I am glad that you don’t have to go on trial,” Bulma told him. “Just community service.”

“Well, and therapy, but I wasn’t going to say that to that loser,” Vegeta said while blushing. Bulma giggled a little bit at his sensitive pride. Before they could continue their conversation, Raditz came back.

“Well, alright then,” Raditz said exasperated. He looked to Bulma. “The fire is pretty much contained, but they need to see if it’s safe for civilians to enter. Right now I’m taking both of you to the hospital to get checked out, especially since Bulma was in there for who knows long with no air and a bunch of smoke.” The two teens nodded. “Then, the chief firefighter, Nappa, is going to call when they give the house the all clear so you can get some stuff. Also, Vegeta,” he said looking over to him, “Nappa wants you to consider being a volunteer fireman. I think you should do it.”

“Really?” Vegeta asked, still unsure about volunteering and seeing fires every day.

“Might make you feel a little better about the whole situation,” Raditz continued. “Just think about it. You seemed to really know what you were doing in there.”

“He’s right,” Bulma chimed. “And you were really brave.”

Vegeta started to think about it with all the praise he was receiving. Maybe it would be a good idea. He’d be able to give back by helping to stop fires and rescue people instead of setting fires and hiding behind a tree as he watched others rescue the people he had hurt. “I’ll think about it,” Vegeta decided.

Raditz nodded before starting his car and driving off from the scene. He occasionally checked his mirror until he saw Bulma and Vegeta passed out in the back seat. He smiled slightly knowing that the two of them would be okay. Thankfully the two of them were getting some rest. They sure had one hell of a day.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters

Vegeta stood across the room as the doctors checked Bulma out. After telling her she was fine, Vegeta was finally able to completely let go of his nerves. He knew she was fine, but he’d rather hear it from the professionals just to be safe.

Bulma got off the hospital bed and was about to give him another hug when her parents shot into the room. They decided to leave their conference early and head home. They wanted to make sure that their little girl was okay.

Both parents began to cry as they thought about what could have happened to her. Her mother refused to let go of her as she rocked her from side to side. Her father looked over to Vegeta and then moved to embrace the boy.

“Thank you,” he whispered to the teen. “Thank you for saving my little girl.”

Vegeta wasn’t really used to receiving thanks or emotional displays except with Bulma, but he awkwardly put his hands on Dr. Briefs’ shoulders. He looked to Bulma who was smiling at him with tears in her eyes as she hugged her mother back.

* * *

As the firefighters had said, the whole downstairs of the house was destroyed. Nappa helped Bulma and her family get to the stairs. Thankfully, all of the upstairs was safe to walk. Vegeta went with Bulma to her room, not wanting to leave her side. He knew he’d feel like that for a while. After all, he could have lost her had he not been over there sooner. He didn’t even want to think about what he would have done.

Bulma looked around her room, not minding that half her stuff had been smoke damaged. She squeezed Vegeta’s hand in reassurance that she was still there. He squeezed hers back as they investigated the extent of the damage. Bulma chuckled when she saw that her school books were still fine. “Aw, I was hoping I wouldn’t have to study more today.”

Vegeta shook his head at her and her attempt at a joke. In all honesty, he didn’t think she’d be studying anyway. There was no way he was letting her out of his grasp for the rest of the day. Then he realized that he hadn’t asked her about what happened before the fire. “What had you so upset that you forgot you were cooking?” he asked gently.

Bulma turned around in Vegeta’s grasp and stared into his eyes. “Yamcha was being a jerk about you. He called you a criminal. That creep was still trying to get with me. I threatened to call the cops if he didn’t leave and before he stormed out he broke my phone. I was going to call my parents, but all of the phone lines were down on the street and I just wanted to know what happened with your trial, so I went to shower to calm myself down and then packed up to come see you. That’s when I heard the alarm…”

Vegeta nodded and wrapped his arms around her, coaxing her deeper into his hold. “It’s over now,” he whispered. “He can’t hurt you anymore and I am fine. Everything is fine, Bulma.”

“I know,” she said crying into his chest. “I know, but I was just so scared. I had faith in you being a good person and others seeing that, but I was so worried they would take you away from me. And then when I couldn’t get out of the house…I was so scared that I would never see you again.”

“You should have been more worried about yourself,” Vegeta told her. “You’ve been worrying about me for too long.”

Bulma nodded. She knew that part of what he said was right. She did need to be more careful and take herself into consideration, but as for his other statement… “I will never stop worrying about you, Vegeta, but I promise to be more careful.” Vegeta just stared down at her with a frown, but she kissed him softly. Vegeta slightly growled in frustration because he knew that she had ended the argument before it even started. She was too clever for her own good sometimes. The two of them heard footsteps and the voices of her parents and pulled apart, both flustered.

Both of Bulma’s parents had an idea of what the two teens had been doing, but smiled at each other before looking towards them. “Your mother and I called in for a room at a hotel, but if you want to be closer to the school, I suggest you stay with Vegeta. I’m going to contact the insurance company tomorrow to discuss our options for repair,” her father said.

Bulma frowned and looked sheepishly down to the ground. “I’m really sorry, daddy,” she said. “I shouldn’t have forgotten about the sandwich.”

Her father moved quickly to embrace her. “I don’t care about the damn sandwich, Bulma, or even the house,” he told her. “That stuff can be replaced, but no one could ever replace you.” Bulma nodded and hugged her father tighter.

Vegeta watched the scene as he grabbed Bulma’s overnight bag and book bag. He walked over to Mrs. Briefs who put her hands on his shoulder. “It’s been a long time since they’ve had a moment like this,” she admitted. “What a relief.”

“Yeah,” Vegeta said awkwardly. He had to admit that he was relieved that the two of them finally worked things out, although he didn’t like the fact that it took his predicament and Bulma being trapped in a burning house to bring them to that point.

“Hey, everything okay in here?” Nappa asked coming in to check on the family.

“Everything is fine now,” Dr. Briefs said pulling Bulma away from him and staring at her with tears in his eyes.

Nappa smirked at them. “Good. Are you all ready to go?”

“Yeah, we are,” Bulma said taking Vegeta’s hand in hers and lacing their fingers together.

* * *

Bulma was happy that her father had given her permission to stay with Vegeta for however long it took to fix the house. They really needed some alone time with no worries. Plus, now that the craziness was over, Vegeta was probably going to try coming back to school. If anyone gave him any trouble, Bulma would be the one to personally bitch slap them.

Vegeta closed the door to his room with his foot as his hands were holding Bulma’s wrists. Bulma chuckled as she put her stuff down and Vegeta was kissing her neck. “Stop, that tickles,” she giggled.

Vegeta paused for a second. “No,” he said softly before repeating his actions. Bulma sighed as his hands stroked her sides through the fabric of her shirt, but before they could go any further, Goku crashed through the door.

“Kakarot!” Vegeta exclaimed both in frustration and nervousness. “What are you doing in here?”

Goku rubbed the back of his head and held out the phone to Bulma. “Chi Chi wants to talk to you to make sure you’re really okay and I’m not just saying that you are.”

Bulma rolled her eyes, but smiled and took the phone from Goku. “I’m fine, Chi. No, Vegeta saved me.” She flashed Vegeta a smile before walking out of the room.

Goku grinned at Vegeta and wouldn’t look away. Vegeta responded by pouting, crossing his arms, and looking away. “What?”

Goku’s grin widened before capturing Vegeta in a bear hug. “Mom said that the lawyer got you out of a trial and Raditz said you might get your hours as a volunteer fireman. And you saved Bulma. You’re a hero, man.”

Vegeta shirked his shoulders to get out of his friend’s grip and pushed him away holding him back. “That’s debatable,” Vegeta replied.

“Nope, it’s the truth,” Goku said with a smile. “You could have waited, but you didn’t. Can’t you just take a compliment?”

Vegeta smirked and shook his head causing Goku to frown and sigh. “Well, I still think what you did was awesome, so good job.” Goku left the room just as Bulma was coming back. She saw the somewhat saddened expression on his face and frowned herself.

“What was that about?” she asked Vegeta. His smirk disappeared when she asked him that. He knew he couldn’t tell her what he had told Goku so he just shrugged and sat down on his bed. Bulma joined him and took his hand in hers. He cocked his head to the side to look at her through the corner of his eye. She flashed him an understanding and accepting smile. “He complimented you, didn’t he?” Vegeta looked away from her to the floor, still slightly ashamed for his past actions. “You can make up for everything, Vegeta. You’ve already done so much already. You saved Broly,” she whispered, “and now you’ve saved me. You could save so many others, Vegeta.”

“I…” Vegeta started to say. He wanted to; he really did. He just couldn’t shake his fear of fire. The only reason he was able to for Bulma was because he couldn’t live without her. She was the only one constant in his life. How could he apply that to every fire?

Bulma sensed his uneasiness and said, “Fasha told me when I was downstairs that the paperwork wouldn’t be put through for a couple weeks, so you have some time. Maybe you should ask your therapist what she thinks.”

Vegeta nodded as he lied down on the bed. He left out a heavy sigh before Bulma moved closer to him. She positioned him so that his head was in her lap and she was running her hand through his hair. He moaned slightly at her simple movements, closed his eyes, and began to relax. Bulma sighed and decided to say something before she lost Vegeta to sleep. “I love you, Vegeta,” she reminded him.

Vegeta let out a contented sigh and snuggled deeper into her lap. “You too,” he whispered before drifting off to sleep. Bulma smiled and continued to rub his head. He hadn’t had to say anything, but at least now there would never be any question that Vegeta did truly love her. She had already known because of his actions, especially today. It still wasn’t settling well with her that she could have died, but she did feel safe being with Vegeta.

She looked down at his sleeping face and saw how relaxed he was. This was the first time in a long time that he didn’t looked pained in his sleep. She slid down a bit so that she could lie down too. She too slept peacefully. It was the first time in months that Vegeta didn’t wake up in the middle of the night from a nightmare.

* * *

Months went by and Vegeta was already done with his community service hours. He worked non-stop, when he wasn’t in school, doing his best to make up for his past actions. His lawyer was surprised at his choice of community service, but he understood the boy’s opinions on the matter. He wanted to make up for being an arson by putting out other fires and saving lives. Along the way, he ended up catching a couple of arsons because he knew the signs; and because of that, he got his hours reduced a couple of times.

Therapy was also going well for him, and Vegeta was able to let go of some of his fears. He and Bulma were still together and neither wanted the relationship to ever end. It was easier to express his feelings now that he wasn’t worried about anyone taking her away from him. They still had to deal with the rumors around school, but neither cared. Eventually, the students realized that they weren’t bothered and the rumors started to die down. For all they knew, it was just a story told by a desperate kid who was now serving time in prison for pre-meditated attempted murder.

“Hey, Vegeta!” Nappa called. “Going off?”

Vegeta looked to his boss and nodded. “Yeah,” he replied. “Tonight is the night of Bulma’s family’s party. They’re unveiling their new downstairs.”

Nappa smirked at him. “Enjoy, kid. You deserve a break.”

Vegeta grinned at him and nodded. He still remembered the day he came to volunteer. It was difficult for him because he had to explain about the community service hours and what they were for. Only Nappa, and Zarbon, who had also become a volunteer fireman after he served his time, were the only two who knew about the past.

_“Alright, you can start on Monday,” Nappa said. He noticed Vegeta looking down to the floor in shame. “What’s wrong, kid?”_

_Vegeta glanced at him and said, “There’s something you should know, though.” He took out a few forms and had Nappa read them. The older firefighter looked slightly shocked, but not for the reason Vegeta thought._

_“You’re one of the kids they’ve been talking about on TV, huh?” he asked sympathetically. “Look, I don’t think any less of you. You kids were placed in a very difficult position. It was that creep’s fault. Now you want to make up for it and I think that’s a good thing. Another one of the guys who lived with you volunteers here too.”_

_“Who?” Vegeta asked in shock._

_“Me.”_

_Vegeta turned to see his old adoptive brother smirking at him. “Zarbon?”_

_“I knew things would work out for you, Vegeta. Welcome to the team.”_

_Vegeta looked back to Nappa who was already signing the forms. It was official; Vegeta was now a volunteer firefighter._

“Tell Bulma I said ‘hi,’” Zarbon requested as Vegeta was leaving the firehouse.

Vegeta smirked at his partner and friend and gave him a nod. “Will do. See you tomorrow.”

* * *

Bulma was feeling impatient as she waited for Vegeta to show up. She had something really important to tell him and she couldn’t wait. When he did show up, he grabbed her from behind and made her jump.

“Vegeta, don’t do that!” she shouted.

He laughed a little, but kissed her because he knew that was the surefire way to get out of trouble. When he pulled away from Bulma, she rolled her eyes. “You know that’s not going to get you out of everything, right?”

Vegeta shrugged. “Almost everything,” he replied. “Where are your parents?”

“Inside,” Bulma told him. “We need to get in there too. Dad wants to introduce you to some of his business partners.”

“Why?” Vegeta asked.

“Because you’re going to a part of the family soon and he wants everyone to know,” Bulma answered. “Now come on; let’s go.”

Vegeta was about to protest when Bulma yanked him into the house. He had to admit that he was in awe by the change. The first place Bulma took him was the kitchen. There were fewer windows than before and the back door had a peep hole to look through. There was an electric oven, finally, and Vegeta definitely felt a lot better about that. He looked at the wall and saw that there was a new security system in place. It’s like the kitchen was redesigned so that what happened before would never happen again.

“Ah, Vegeta, there you are,” he heard Dr. Briefs call to him. Vegeta turned to see him and three men tailing him. Dr. Briefs turned to his associates and said, “This is Vegeta, my daughter’s fiancé.” Each of the men moved to shake Vegeta’s hand and started asking him questions.

“So, Vegeta, what do you do?” one of them asked.

Vegeta was about to answer, but Dr. Briefs answered for him. “He’s a volunteer fireman. He’s also a senior like Bulma in honors and AP classes.”

One of the associates glared slightly at him, but Vegeta didn’t understand why until he spoke. “My son said it was some community service thing.”

“Yes, well we all know how dependable Yamcha can be, don’t we?” the last associate retorted. He turned to Vegeta. “It was this boy who saved this girl while your son just ran off.”

Yamcha’s father frowned and sighed before he looked back to Bulma. “I am truly sorry about that, Bulma. I didn’t know he was that unstable.”

“It’s okay,” Bulma whispered shyly.

He looked back to Vegeta. “Sorry, son…I didn’t mean to judge you. I’m still just frustrated with what my kid did to my closest friend’s family.”

“It’s fine,” Vegeta replied stoically.

“You two should go enjoy yourselves,” Dr. Briefs told them. “Go dance in the ballroom or something.” He chuckled at the look Vegeta was giving him.

He and his associates went to go get some food while Vegeta looked to Bulma questioningly. “Ballroom?” he asked.

Bulma laughed. “Yeah, daddy thought it would be a nice addition. Anyway, let’s go. I have something I wanted to tell you anyway.”

That peaked Vegeta’s curiosity. “What?”

Bulma smiled at him knowing that he was never going to agree to go unless she told him. “Well, you see, my dad is thinking about taking someone in.”

Vegeta’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Another foster child?” he questioned.

Bulma shook her head and smiled. “No. You see, this guy isn’t a kid, but he needs a lot of assistance and has some pretty high medical bills. He’s pretty close to someone we know, and we wanted to help him…you know, now that we had a room built downstairs and a ramp added to the outside.”

“Woman, why are you talking in riddles?” Vegeta growled. “I don’t know what you’re getting at.”

Bulma tried to force herself not to laugh at Vegeta’s expression. She could tell he was getting irritated and moved to kiss his temple. “Maybe I’ll give you another clue. This guy is our age, can’t walk, and uses a notepad to talk to his friends.”

Vegeta’s eyes widened upon his realization. “Broly’s going to be living here?” he asked in amazement. Bulma smiled and nodded. “You had something to do with it, didn’t you?”

She gave him a coy glance. “Maybe, but he’s not doing this for me…well he kind of is, but still.”

“Woman, you’re talking in riddles again,” Vegeta said with a scowl.

Bulma put her hand on his shoulder and looked at him with a serious expression. “He’s doing this more for you, to repay you for his mistakes in the past, to make up for what you had to go through, and to thank you for keeping me safe and making me happy.”

Vegeta pulled the unsuspecting Bulma into a hug. “You are amazing,” he whispered in her ear. “You knew that was what he’d decide as soon as you told him.” He couldn’t see Bulma’s loving smile, but he felt her nod against him. He pulled her back slightly and looked into her eyes. “I love you,” he stated sincerely. Her happy expression was all he needed to see to realize something very important about his life. Vegeta finally had a family and a home, and nothing was going to take that away from him.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own DBZ or the characters.

Peace…it’s a word that everyone came to know after everything that had happened. No one talked about the Vegeta’s past or his foster families, nor did anyone talk about the fire at Bulma’s. All of that was history now that there were very few reminders. Vegeta’s therapist thought that would be for the best. It wasn’t that she believed in repressing stuff, but he had talked about it for nearly a year now and had finally started to forgive himself. It was time for him to move on.

Broly was living at Bulma’s house and her parents made sure he had the best care they could afford. The young teen was very thankful that he could have somewhat of a normal life. The Briefs paid for homeschooling, so he could catch up on the studies and perhaps one day get a degree. It was also nice to be in a house with such loving people who treated him like family. Broly couldn’t have asked for anything better.

Vegeta visited often as he either stayed over there or brought Bulma back to his house with him. Vegeta made it a point to see everyone he cared about every day, even at the fire department. Even though he and Bulma had graduated, he still volunteered there while in college fighting fires side by side Nappa and Zarbon whom he trusted with his life. He and Bulma were both accepted to the local college. Vegeta was happy about that. He didn’t think he could stand it if either one of them was too far from home. He refused to be separated from his fiancé and his family.

* * *

“It’s nice out today,” Goku stated as he, Chi Chi, Vegeta, Bulma, and Broly were strolling around town.

“Yeah, it is,” Bulma agreed inconspicuously grabbing Vegeta’s hand. “We should go grab some lunch.”

“I’m game,” Vegeta stated.

“ **Me too! ^_^** ” Broly wrote.

“Let’s head to the deli, then,” Chi Chi suggested. Everyone agreed that a sandwich in this sunny weather was the best idea.

Outside the deli, though, Vegeta saw a little kid with black, spiked hair crying into his lap. The others didn’t seem to notice, so Vegeta told them to go on in and went to talk to the kid.

The little boy gasped when he felt Vegeta’s hand on his shoulder. “H-hi,” he said through his tears.

“Hi,” Vegeta replied. “You okay, kid?” The boy shook his head. “What’s wrong?”

“D-d-daddy hit me really hard,” the kid whimpered, “a-and m-m-mommy didn’t even notice because she’s just so high. Someone came for me, but I-I’m scared to go back. I’m too afraid to go to another f-f-family. They’re all mean.”

Vegeta nodded in understanding. He remembered what it felt like when he called CPS on his parents. He was afraid of them, but he was also afraid of the system. His fears were confirmed when he was with Frieza, but now things didn’t seem so bad. “Listen kid, you may end up with a bad family, but you could also end up with a good family. I was in foster care too, once.”

“Y-you were?” the kid asked wiping away some of his tears. Then a new wave of tears came about when the kid saw a man lighting a cigarette. He grasped onto Vegeta who seemed to notice the lighter’s flame. He was still a little hesitant around fire, but it was a lot better now. He looked down at the little boy who was hiding against his chest.

“You afraid of fire, kid?” he asked. The boy nodded. “I am too, but I can promise you that it won’t hurt you if you don’t let it.” The little boy looked up at him. “I was adopted by a real creep. Fire became the scariest thing in the world to me, but I got past it. And now that guy is gone, I’m part of a loving family, my fiancé’s parents took in my best friend, my fear of fire is getting better now that I’m a volunteer fireman…everything fell into place for me.” He put his hand on the boy’s shoulder. “And things will for you too.”

“Um, Vegeta,” he heard Goku call. He turned to see his friend’s staring at him with confused expressions. “What are you doing?”

He narrowed his eyes at them, surprised that they didn’t care about the crying child in front of him. “What does it look like I’m doing, Kakarot?” he snapped. “I’m talking to this kid.”

“Vegeta?” Bulma said gently, but questioningly. “What kid?”

Vegeta’s eyes widened and he looked back to the kid only to see that his hand was hanging in the air and there was truly no little boy. Vegeta quickly stood up and said, “Never mind. Let’s go eat. I’m starving.”

The others went inside, but Bulma held Vegeta back. “Vegeta, are you hearing voices again?” she asked him.

Vegeta shook his head and took her hand. “I’m fine, Bulma. Let’s just go back to the others.”

He started to lead her into the restaurant as he looked back at the spot where he saw the little boy. He shook his head at his mind playing tricks on him, but he couldn’t help but feel a little lighter in spirit. As he had said, mind trick or not, his life had fallen into place, and now it was time for him to go live it.


End file.
